A Rose and an Amaranth
by Hakura0
Summary: A simple attempt for dinner goes astray when the Tardis lands the Doctor and Rose into the middle of the Dark Ages. Part Three Added: The trio are faced with a problem of Titanic proportions. Written with Ryuu.
1. Plague

It wasn't that the Tyler flat was boring, really -- oh, who was he kidding? It was excruciating. For someone very used to traveling all the time - and after nine hundred years, he had grown very used to it - staying in one place for any longer than he felt like wasn't the easiest thing in the world.

He'd read every book in the apartment already, some twice - but then, he did sort of have a thing for fast reading. And there was only so much television he could watch without feeling like his head was going to explode ("I can't believe people watch this," he'd said once, and Jackie had gotten a bit offended at him - not like that was new, or anything).

The benefit was that it gave him time to get more or less used to his new form. It wouldn't do to have little surprises creeping up when they were in danger, after all. Being in contemporary - well, for Rose, anyway - London kept Rose busy, too; too busy to keep looking at him like he'd killed her dog. That was a definite plus.

But he couldn't stay there forever, and he knew it. It got to be too much, and anyway people were starting to ask questions - "who's that man staying with Jackie and Rose?" For now, though, a temporary escape was all he could get - up the fire escape and onto the roof, where there were no people, television, or tea. No burnt cooking or telephones.

He had always hated domestics.

As much as the idea of normalcy had haunted Rose just a week or two ago, she had thrown herself head first back into. She took every chance she could to get out of the flat, spending time with Mickey, and other friends. People she realized she hadn't given a single thought to during her travels.

Rose ate chips and watched the telly and sometimes even managed to forget about the Time Lord currently staying in her house. The image of the Doctor, her Doctor exploding with golden light and being replaced by this strange rambling man always lurked just on the edge of her conscious though.

She didn't avoid him on purpose, or so she told herself, she was busy. But Rose knew it wouldn't stay this way. Going about her day to day while this new Doctor sat at the flat where she didn't need to worry. In her dreams she could hear the way he'd said 'Barcelona', and knew he'd be off again. She just didn't know if that was a good thing.

So when Rose Tyler came home one day from shopping with Mickey, to find just her Mum and some friends, she didn't know what to think. Her brain quickly told her though, that she'd walked past the Tardis on her way in. After searching the flat she went in the only direction she had left to look, up. She saw him on the roof, just out of the corner of her eyes. Knowing if she looked right at him she'd have to say something, instead she looked up at the flat gray sky.

"You're home early." It was an offhand comment, and he very nearly made a face as soon as it was out of his mouth. He'd clearly been here too long, he was beginning to sound like he lived there. And it wasn't as if she had 'set' hours anyway - he just meant that she was home earlier than she had been the day before.

Leaning on the bit of stone rail at the edge of the roof, he squinted at the horizon past other buildings. Lucky thing about roofs - they tended to be a bit higher up than anything else, and made for a pretty good view.

He wasn't sure what to think about Rose being gone so long. So he made a joke out of it instead. "You left me alone with your mother all day." His tone was light, whatever he might have been thinking.

"There was a sale on." It sounded like an excuse even to her. For some reason even this little bit higher up did something to her. Made her remember the eagerness to get back out there.

Rose looked at him, her head filled with things she couldn't say. 'I thought you'd left' 'I didn't think you'd have stayed this long' Things that swayed to much to one side. Out of the middle ground she was desperate to hold.

"It looks like it might rain." Was what she actually said, leaning back against the rail. "It was on the news to, at the store." Was this really the point she was at, talking about the weather?

He raised an eyebrow at that, though he didn't look at her, keeping his eyes on the horizon. It was cloudy, but he wasn't concerned - weather didn't bother him. Well, unless it was a hurricane or something; hurricanes bothered him. Rain, not so much.

"It rains a lot here." He was briefly surprised that he had been there long enough to pick up on it beyond the universal stereotype of rainy London. Truth told, he hadn't expected to stay so long. But he was waiting. He wasn't sure what, exactly, for, but he was. "I guess that means I can't stand here forever."

He wasn't totally sure he was just referring to the afternoon anymore.

"Mums friend'll probably be heading home soon. I think she might be going to see that friend of her, with the fruit?" She couldn't remember what his name was. "So it'll probably be quieter in there."

Rose hoped that's what he had meant. It was selfish, sure, not wanting to make any decisions but... She thought of the fact that she'd really been forcing him to stay here.

Even if she still didn't believe that he was really her Doctor, he'd still saved everyone on Christmas. "Or if you'd like a change of scenery we could go somewhere." A few seconds passed after she'd said it, before she quickly added "You know, for dinner or something."

He was almost excited for a second - go somewhere - but her addendum brought him back down to Earth. Metaphorically speaking. He couldn't help a sort of half-frown, stepping back from the edge and glancing at her, then back to the sky.

Cloudy. The light clouds that had populated the space all day were turning to varying shades of gray. There was a charge in the air; it would be lightning.

"Sure you want to be seen in public with me?" A quick, mercurial grin. Half-teasing, partly serious - he knew she didn't trust him. He wanted her to trust him. Now that was unfamiliar territory. He had taken it for granted that she trusted him, went with him. Now she wasn't ready to leave again. What if she didn't get ready? What if she didn't trust him?

"I figure once won't hurt." Rose said, "Besides, it's that or cook." The addition was teasing. She watched the sky for a moment, before talking again, her voice quiet.

"I realized I've been leaving you here to fend for yourself with Mum, while I caught up with everyone here." She didn't add that she'd realized it the first day, and had kept realizing it. That maybe now she needed to catch up with him.

She had a feeling he knew she wasn't sure of him. But a public place, somewhere still at home, maybe she could give him a chance. At the least she'd have to talk to him.

The Doctor smiled a little, though he was still looking at the sky - watching clouds collect. "It's not easy, you know." Okay, that sounded too serious. Follow it up. "Your mother thinks I like her cooking. I'm... Not sure why." This time he actually did make a face.

Not that he was much better, with the cooking thing, but he didn't really have to be. And anyway, he didn't do domestics. Jackie, evidently, didn't either.

"It's because you haven't told her you didn't, have you?" Rose asked, grinning at a familiar subject to pay attention to, "Look at how hard Mickey tries, and she still pushed it on him."

She almost laughed at the face, but just managed not to. "It's an acquired taste though, really." Rose emphasized the last word. Acquired meaning 'sooner or later the tastebuds go' of course.

"I.. Haven't got round to it." He was really joking, this time, smiling. It was good, at least, to talk to her. Maybe it wouldn't convince her that he was still the Doctor, but it helped. Made him feel better, anyway. "And I'd rather not acquire that taste, I think."

He grinned, then, looking over at her. "You know, I have had worse food. There was this little planet, and.. I have to wonder: Where'd they learn to cook that badly?" Probably a bad joke. But it was worth a shot.

Rose looked over, catching his eyes just in time to laugh. She looked away as she did, putting a hand over her mouth. But then she grinned, then in a sort of fake shock, looked back over.

"If you are suggesting-" Rose stopped train of thought lost and hung her head, but looked back over, sheepish to admit she'd actually forgotten what she was going to say. "Maybe she's got a cookbook from them?" It was a bad coverup, but it was the best she could think of.

"Well, either that or we're not the only ones who've been visiting other planets.. Now, how d'you think they found a publisher for that?" He raised an eyebrow, still grinning. This was more than they'd spoken since Christmas, and it was nice.

It would be easy to say he hadn't realized how much he missed having someone to talk to, but he had. Even if it was just pointless conversation, it was better than... Well, standing on a roof alone. He'd gotten too used to her being around him. Bad luck, that.

"Shopping network." Rose said immediately, in a knowing tone. "Prob'ly bundled it with a lot of pans, or some spices or something." She shook her head at the thought.

The sky had continued to darken as they spoke and it began to drizzle. Rose ignored it for the moment, still not sure how well they'd be able to get conversation back up if they stopped now. Well, if she stopped now, anyhow.

"Ah, that must be it. Aliens taking over the shopping networks... Explains more than it doesn't," he said, shrugging. He noticed the rain and glanced up, but he didn't move to go inside, either.

"How else d'you think they've got all that weird stuff?" Rose asked, she was leaning sideways against the ledge now, facing him. "I don't mean the jewelry, or any of that. Trust me, home sick, Soaps and shopping channels all day. Plenty of strange stuff."

"I s'pose.. I've never really watched them. But the soaps, I'll give you - those are either alien, or I've been overestimating you lot." He was joking. Really.

"The rest of the universe's telly is like Soaps? You'd better not tell my Mum or she'll have you fixing it up so she can get them." Rose warned him jokingly.

He thought about that for a minute. "Well, with a bit of tweaking... But no, your soaps are bad enough. You don't need the ones from other planets." The fleeting thought of a Dalek soap opera crossed his mind - well, there went any semblance of seriousness he had going for him.

She was enjoying herself, and it surprised her. If she concentrated just on who he was now, didn't think about the rest of it. "Oh alright then." She thought of something, it wouldn't be taking back words and, she thought it might be okay...

"You mentioned the little planet with worse food then Mum's. Who's got the best?" she asked.

"Well... That is a good question," he said, grinning. He shrugged, thinking about it for a second. "There was this little border planet, right in the Andromeda system - that's not so far, really - that makes the most amazing.. I don't even know how to describe it, but it was good."

He wanted to add, 'we should go there,' but he didn't want to ruin the moment.

She sat there for a moment, thinking as best she could. She knew what she'd been leading to with the question, what she wanted to say now. Admitted that she still wanted the wandering. Rose looked into the sky, felt the rain on her breathed in and looked at him.

"And if we went there, d'you think you could manage to get us back here now?"

It was really very hard not to show how thrilled that question made him. The dark sky meant nothing to the light that brought. Hope.

"Well..." He grinned and shrugged, waving a hand dismissively. "I can do my best. I'm getting pretty good at landing in London.."

"Can't say much for your last landing though." She pointed out to him. "I'll leave a note in-" Pausing, she reached into a pocket, pulling out a phone. Pressing buttons for a moment she finally sent off a message saying 'Going out 4 dinner.' Pocketing it again, she moved a bit back from the ledge. "It'll be your ears this time." She warned him with a pointing finger.

He held up both hands - a surrender. "Understood," he said, his tone halfway to laughter. Lowering his hands, he smiled. "I promise I won't crash land in the Thames."

"You'd better not." She teased, then started towards the fire escape. "C'mon before we look like we swam in." She said as it started to rain harder.

"I guess that wouldn't look good.." A grin, and he followed her to the fire escape. "To the TARDIS," he said after a moment; he couldn't help sounding a little triumphant, there.

"To the Tardis." She agreed, making her way down and to the familiar blue box. It'd managed to stay graffiti free so far, Rose noted absently.

The Doctor was very glad for the lack of graffiti. He figured the boy who'd tried that the last time had stopped after being made to wash it off. "Here we are," he said, unlocking the door and pushing it open. It felt like coming home - it was coming home.

Rose was somewhat quiet as she entered the Tardis, looking for a moment where a hologram had stood, before carefully looking at the Doctor out of the corner of her eye. "So this planet, what're the locals like?" Rose asked.

The Doctor had gone straight to the controls, running a hand over a few of the buttons lightly, fondly. He had missed the TARDIS. "Ah, that's right. Much better." He was talking to himself, softly, and it took a moment for him to respond to Rose's question, glancing up. "..they're Not bad. Sort of.. Blue-green." A smile. "Some have horns. But not that different from humans."

"Alright then." She said, moving closer to the console herself. "Wouldn't want to get to many odd looks at dinner." Her voice was half joking, half serious. Part of her thought, that if somehow instead of border planet they were heading for, they landed in the middle of something as usual... She wouldn't mind so much. She'd be hungry, but other then that it might be okay.

"Well, it wouldn't be so bad. Your shirt's sort of.. Blue-greenish." He grinned, turning the necessary dials and pushing buttons to get them started. "'Course, I can't promise they won't take that as an offense..."

"Well it can't be as bad as hanging from a barrage balloon in a german air raid with the union jack one, can it?" She asked as he spun the dials. "I mean, people wear peach all the time."

"Fair enough - that wasn't really.. Could you hold that?" He pointed to one of the various levers, interrupting his own thought. He was still smiling. This was nearly like before; different, of course, because he was different, but not so bad. "I don't think they have barrage balloons on this planet."

Rose held the switch he'd asked her to. "So no rope-burn at least then." She said with a smile, then thought of something. "You do have some sort of way to pay for whatever the food is, don't you?"

"'Course I do!" A pause, then, "I'm almost sure... Well, somewhere around here, there's got to be something..."

"Doctor!" She said, before she'd even realized it. Quick to add something, Rose continued "Maybe in a coat pocket?"

He shrugged. "Maybe.. Oh." There was that familiar sound - the TARDIS was leaving. Well, going and coming, as it were. He smiled. "I'll see if I can find anything. Definitely don't want to get stuck doing the dishes there. Water'll boil your skin right off." He was half-talking to himself, in the usual way, walking off to.. Well, someplace in the TARDIS. It was awfully big on the inside, and he was trying to remember where he might have left currency from that planet.

She let go of the lever, figuring she could and followed him to whoever he was going. There'd be no point in standing there watching the column move, and she'd never really seen more of the Tardis, she realized.

It didn't take long for the TARDIS to lurch to a stop. Actually, it took entirely too little time, and made the Doctor pause as he was going through the pockets of some old coat he'd found. He blinked at the handful of paper money he'd found there, a few crumpled bills from a planet he'd never visit again.

"Now that's strange.." And he took off for the controls. Something had to be wrong. The TARDIS wasn't exactly known for its accuracy, but he had felt reasonably safe this time. He wasn't sure what had inspired that bit of confidence. "Where are we..? Still on Earth?" He prodded a couple of buttons, eyes narrowed slightly and focused on the small screen's display. Trying to get a read.

Rose had raced after him as he went off. Something gone wrong, if that wasn't proof that he was the same man, she wasn't sure what would be.

"Maybe leaving it to itself wasn't such a good idea?" Rose asked him, standing a bit back from the console to try not to get in the way. "Earth... Well that's good I guess, isn't it? Besides that we didn't mean to be here?"

"Not sure yet, not sure... Should've told me." Not that the TARDIS had ever shown a propensity towards such communication in the past, but still. "Can't get a read on where we are, exactly. Or what time." He was very tempted to make a joke about the year five billion, but decided it would probably be in bad taste, since if it was, they would die instantly when they stepped out.

He grinned a little anyway, glancing up. "Only one way to find out, I s'pose." This was a bit more like it.

"Into the unknown." Rose said, looking at the door. The same old, she supposed. "What about the cameras, look outside, make sure we're not at the bottom of the ocean or something?" She suggested.

Doubted it of course, but it wouldn't hurt to look.

"Well, we could do that.. But where's the fun?" A pause, and he added, "I'm sure there's oxygen. Absolutely sure. Mostly." It was mostly a joke.

She grinned at him, "Let's go then. But isn't there oxygen in water too?" Rose was joking, mostly. She'd moved towards the door though.

"That's true, that's true.." He smiled, going to the door and opening it to step outside. And stopped, abruptly. "..oh, That's not good."

The street sort of looked like London, or at least one of those dirty British cities in the age before running water and sewage systems. Rows of houses, and the TARDIS tucked away between two of them. White circles around the doorknobs on two, three, four of the houses in view.

"What is it?" Rose asked, in the doorway and peering outside. It looked old, but beyond that, she couldn't place it. There was a smell, and the white circles around the doorknobs she felt she should know something about, but couldn't for the life of her figure it out.

"We're in the Dark Ages." His voice faltered slightly, as if he weren't quite sure if he should be laughing or not, but he wasn't smiling. "Not sure where in Europe, but.. Dark Ages, definitely."

"Oh..." Rose wasn't sure what to say, and stayed in the entryway of the Tardis. "The Dark ages, but isn't that like, with the plague?"

The Doctor nodded, glancing around briefly. His eyes kept being drawn back to those white circles. "..the Rings around the doorknobs mean that the house has had a plague victim. One in three people in some places die of it." Not that there was anything they could really do for it, but he didn't like the idea of exposing Rose to plague.

"Shouldn't we go then? There's not really anything we can stop." Rose looked around, remembering everything she'd heard about the plague. "I mean, it's fleas on rats right?" She asked.

"Exactly. But the TARDIS brought us here.. I wonder if it's for a reason?" A pause, and he continued, "I mean, why here? Other than maybe she's mad at me or something.."

"You did send her off too. Told me to just 'let her die'." Rose didn't look at him as she said it, leaning on the doorframe.

He frowned slightly, nodding. "..I Did. This isn't exactly the best way to get me back.." He was considering it, when there was a sound of movement from just around their corner - men walking by, in white cloaks and wearing what looked like metal 'helmets', but with a long beak on the front, where the nose might be. Only their chins were visible.

"...oh, Well then."

"So... What do we do?" She asked, watching the figures. Rose was hovering just outside the doorway now. "Who're they?" She wondered, deciding that she definitely hadn't paid much attention in history.

"Doctors, ironically." He smiled slightly, shaking his head. "They thought those masks would protect them from the plague." A pause, and he looked at her. "What d'you want to do?"

She stayed quiet for a moment, turning slightly to eye the Tardis. "If the Tardis wants us to be here... We'd probably just end up right back. We should... Look around a bit at least, I guess." Rose said finally as she looked at the Doctor.

"There's a plan." He grinned. "Don't worry. I'm not going to let anything happen." Not bad, anyway, not to her. Not this time. Definitely not.

"Alright." She said, "Then shall we go?" Rose asked, not exactly sure where, but chances were if there was something strange afoot, they'd run into it. Probably head first.

The Doctor nodded, holding out his hand to her. "Let's." Waiting to see her reaction, sort of.

She took his hand, after a moment's hesitation. Rose smiled at him, if nothing else, this much she could do.

He smiled in return, leading her out to the street. It was midafternoon, but there weren't many people about. Given the circumstances, that wasn't hard to believe. But those doctors in the helmets and white sheets were pacing about, occasionally disappearing into a white-painted door.

"Right, or left?" He asked, gesturing to the street.

"Left." Rose decided, without thinking about it. She watched the doctors pacing and pulled hers lightly in that direction. She didn't want to stand still for some reason.

A nod, and he stepped in that direction, keeping an eye on the white-cloaked physicians. "This street's quiet. Even for now," he remarked, quietly so as not to be overheard.

"Yeah..." Rose said softly back, even without something to compare it to it felt odd. She realized something, "Wouldn't this really be a good time for something to happen, if something was going to, I don't know, attack or something. Lots of people dead, or sick, just, really weakened in general. If they knew they didn't have to worry about the plague..." She trailed off, realizing that she must've been traveling awhile, to be thinking like this.

The Doctor nodded. He hadn't let go of her hand. "You're right. Absolutely - that's brilliant. Because everyone important in this age is locking themselves in a room to save themselves, and there's no one to stop them! That is.. Well, that's pretty advanced. Imagine they don't know all that much, but they'll have figured it out.."

"What wouldn't have to worry?" She pondered outloud, mostly to herself. Rose couldn't resist the little rush at his confirmation of at least the idea. She couldn't help but eye the well covered doctors with a bit of suspicion.

"Not sure yet. But we'll figure it out." He grinned, aware that one of the clusters of doctors had paused and were watching him. It made sense - anyone who smiled in this age was obviously deranged, but... "Maybe we should ask them. Don't seem to be doing much, do that?"

"Okay." Rose said, "Why not?" She grinned a bit nervously, he'd do the talking, hopefully. Still holding his hand, she raised an eyebrow. "You would think they'd have something to do besides stare."

"Well, they're doctors. 'Course they've got nothing to do during a plague!" Pause. "Oh, that was mean." He smiled, leading Rose over to the doctors, though he kept a relative distance. "Hello!" That was a bit too cheerful. Ah, well.

"Who are you?" one of the doctors asked, his voice muffled by the metal of his mask, clearly perplexed. Then again, near-medieval doctors meeting a rather more contemporary Doctor and significantly more contemporary Rose would cause some confusion.

"I'm the Doctor." He thought about that for a moment. "That's with a capital 'D'. I know you lot are doctors, too. This is Rose."

"Who are you?" it repeated. Well, that was going well.

Rose thought quickly for some sort of reply to try to get something useful. "We're lost. We've got a message, something, for whoever's in charge of you lot. Took a wrong turn, What way should we go?" Rose spoke before she ran the words through her head. Stupid she thought.The holiday at home hadn't done much for her brain it seemed. Just because he'd repeated himself... She shot an apologetic look towards the Doctor.

The Doctor glanced at Rose, but didn't comment - he wouldn't say anything one way or the other in front of this man.

"In charge? No one is in charge of us." The doctor (lowercase D) sounded almost dazed, but that could have been the muffling from the mask, or any number of things. "We are merely doctors."

"In uniform?" The Doctor (uppercase D, this time) raised an eyebrow, quickly adding, "No, no, don't answer that. Nevermind. We'll figure it out on our own. Up by Tyneside, yeah?" Alright, that was a total guess.

"Not Tyneside."

"You're talkative, aren't you? Mind telling me where we've ended up? Lost, and all that." Glancing at Rose as he confirmed her story.

"Cardiff."

The sheer number of curses running through the Doctor's head - though he thankfully didn't voice them - was dizzying. "Oh, of course."

"Is there some sort of magnet or something?" Rose couldn't help but ask, in an amazed whisper. "Well, thanks." She told the doctor. "You know, I think I recognize this place now." Talking quickly, she looked up the road, and turned to a section of road. "Your friend's house is just up there, isn't it?" Rose turned to the Doctor as she questioned. She was getting a bad feeling.

"A magnet... Something like that." The Doctor smiled faintly, but he looked worried, nodding. He glanced at the doctor briefly, then back at Rose, thinking a moment before saying, "You know, I think you're right. Thanks for the help, then!" Cheerfully, and he stepped back before turning to the side, still holding on to Rose's hand maybe a little more tightly than he had to.

Turning with him, she waved idly to the doctor, before starting down the street, forcing herself to move slowly. If she noticed the Doctor's grip she didn't say anything. "Maybe we should find some normal people to ask?" She questioned quietly once they were a bit away. Her eyes glanced around anxiously. "Something doesn't feel right." she said, barely more then a breath.

"Nothing feels right," the Doctor confided, looking up at one of the houses. "There should be people here. The Black Death killed less than sixty percent of the population... So where is the other forty percent?" He frowned. "All we've seen are those doctors."

"Inside?" Rose guessed, looking at the houses herself. She didn't want to know whether to feel better, or worse that it wasn't just her with the feeling. "Or, wasn't there a lot of fleeing to the countryside and such?" She didn't really believe what she was saying.

"Probably. Let's try..." He thought for a moment, then pointed at random to one of the buildings. White circle round the doorknob. "That one. Looks quiet enough, hm? No worry about noisy neighbors, anyway." He wasn't sure if the joke was meant to comfort her or himself. Could go either way.

"Right." She gave a small smile at the joke. "Let's see what's going on then." She started, more confidently then she felt, towards the door. Rose knocked first, but tried the door when there was no answer. It opened, and she peered into the dark room.

"Stay close," he muttered, looking inside over her shoulder. The hall was dark - there were no candles burning, or lanterns; no windows, for that matter. "I don't think anyone's here..." Unless they were dead. That wasn't out of the question, either.

"We should check, just in case." She said, moving in. Rose watched the floor carefully as she walked in. There was little of interest in the hall so she moved on. In the next room though, a table caught her interest. "Doctor" She whispered, not sure why, and pointed to the table. It was set, as much as it could be, food of various origins sitting on plates, bread and cheese in various stages of mold, and the rest looking as if it had been sitting there quite a while.

He followed to the next room, raising an eyebrow when he saw the table setting. "..now That doesn't usually happen with plague, does it?" he asked no one in particular, glancing about the room. Kitchen and dining room both looked as if people had been there and left very suddenly. "No sign of anything else out of the ordinary, except that they left very quickly."

"Yeah." She agreed. No sign of a struggle, just chairs pulled out and dusty glasses half full of something odd smelling. Rose wondered what could've happened. Out of the corner of her eye she saw something disappear into a hole, and took a quick step in the other direction. "Do you think, the rest of the houses are probably..." Rose let the question fade.

"The same as this, I'm guessing." He had one hand in his coat pocket, holding on to the sonic screwdriver. Nothing to use it on, yet. "I'm sure some are actual plague victims, 'course, but this.. This is something else entirely."

Something else entirely...that More or less summed up most of their encounters. "What about the houses without the circles? Maybe there'll be someone in one of those?" The doctors hadn't entered any of those that she could see. Wouldn't have a reason, come to think of it. A thought was on the edge of her mind, but she couldn't quite grasp it.

"Could be. If they are, though.. Why aren't they coming out?" He frowned. "They'd starve stuck in their houses, but there's no one on the streets." He shifted uneasily. Of all places in the universe, they had to end up in the year 1351 in the one place that genuinely creeped him out.

Rose focused on a random bit of wall, gathering her thoughts. "What if they're avoiding those doctors?" She started slowly, "They've been on every street. Maybe they're only out at certain times, and then when they're not... The people come out?" She couldn't figure why, and it didn't really make sense to her. "But that doesn't seem right either..." She picked at the end of her sleeve.

"I think there's more to this than we're seeing. A lot more." The Doctor was thinking it over, pacing now over a bit of empty space between the stove and the table. "I think-" He was cut off abruptly by the sound of something falling above them. "--we should check upstairs," he finished weakly.

"Definitely." Rose agreed, quickly, moving towards where she'd seen the stairs. They'd faced the door, but she hadn't heard that again. Without thinking she was jogging up them, eyes squinting.

The Doctor followed quickly - he didn't want to let her out of sight, not here. He could usually trust her to more or less take care of herself, but... Plague and disappearing people didn't make for good tests of that.

The upstairs was just as barren as the downstairs, it seemed. One of the doors at the top of the stairs, though, was closed tight, a chair propped against it. The door was shaking. On the other side of the narrow hall from that door was an open door to what looked like a bedroom, sparsely decorated and empty.

"Rose, get away from the door." His voice was flat - dead serious.

Hearing the tone of his voice, Rose obeyed. She sidled back down the narrow hallway, eyes still locked onto the door. " 'S all yours." She told him as she past him, resting her hand on his arm for a moment as she did. His seriousness gave the place a whole 'nother edge for her. There was a heavy candlestick sitting on a ledge and she grasped it out of instinct.

He nodded, pressing a hand to the door and pushing against it as he reached with the other hand to remove the chair. He had evidently miscalculated, because the door came open so fast it nearly hit him, and he stepped back against the wall.

And there was nothing there, except.. "What is this?" He wasn't talking to anyone but himself. One of those strange bird-like helmets was in the doorway, but no accompanying doctor could be seen. The room past the door was in disarray, the bed tipped on its side and a table hanging halfway out a broken window. There were long furrows in the door where something had scratched into it.

Rose moved up behind him, looking into the room herself. She watched the helmet carefully, her grip on the candle tightening a little. Her eyes wouldn't leave the mask. "Whys it in the doorway?" Her voice wavered, she'd seen living plastic, why not metal? She had a sudden urge to kick it across the room.

"There's no one else in there." She thought out loud, accusation in her voice. Rose noticed the scratched in the door, and once more focused on the mask.

The Doctor knelt beside the mask, taking out the sonic screwdriver. At least it could give him light to work by, and some idea what this was. "...there's Nothing inside it, but it sounded like there was something in here. Typical Cardiff." He was still a little bitter over having ended up here, evidently.

"..I'm Not picking up anything abnormal. Except.. hm. Now that's not normal." He reached out with the hand that wasn't holding the sonic screwdriver, snatching something out of the mask with a care and precision that was not his usual MO.

Looking up at Rose, he asked, "Why would a healer's mask have a sprig of amaranth in it?" Pinched between two fingers was a small stem - two green leaves and a clutter of tiny pink flowers.

She looked at the stem and shrugged slightly. "I dunno, it's an herb or something, isn't it?" Rose asked. "I take it that it's not medicinal then? I don't think I've heard of it before..." She eyed the stem once more.

"It couldn't have been what was making all that noise." Rose said incredulously. She moved into the room now, peering down over the other side of the tipped over bed.

"An herb, yes. Or a weed, or.. You know, some people eat it." He shrugged, looking at it curiously. "Chinese used to use it as a medicine, but.. Something tells me this doesn't have anything to do with medicine." He stood, still holding the little sprig of flower in his hand. "'Immortal amaranth, a flower which once in Paradise, fast by the tree of life, began to bloom...' It means never-fading. Guessing that's supposed to be significant, or they wouldn't have left it for us.."

"Who says it was left for us? Maybe for once something just happens to have been somewhere, and we came across it." But once again she didn't believe a word she said. "It still doesn't explain what was making all the noise." She pointed out, as she turned back to the Doctor.

"It does and it doesn't." He didn't look away from the flower yet. Amaranth: pigweed, quinoa de castilla, Joseph's coat, love-lies-bleeding. What did it mean? "A flower that's supposed to be immortal. In Paradise Lost it was in Eden, in Greece it was sacred to Artemis.. Think, what is significant about it? And how did they use it to animate that helmet?"

"Is the helmet made of all normal things? Rose asked, as she moved over and crouched near it, picking it up. Turning it over, she examined the inside. Putting down her candlestick now, she brushed some hair behind her ear. A spot in the helmet caught her eye, but when she scratched it, it came off. Dirt.

"Careful with that." He frowned, looking at its outside while Rose looked on the inside. "I'm reasonably sure it's iron, actually. Interesting that they got it in that shape. But they're not plague doctors. Plague doctors wear black, these... I'm not entirely sure they're human." That was an understatement.

Rose put the helmet back down, and stood back up, idly wiping her hands off on her pants. "We should keep looking then." She said easily, then remembered something. They'd seen them in white before he'd asked what she wanted to do. He'd known there was something up already then.

A nod. "We should try the houses without the white marks... If there are real people here, that ought to be where they are." A pause, and he added, "If not, well. Don't let your guard down." He certainly wouldn't be.

"Right." Rose said with a nod, she debated grabbing the candlestick again for a second, but decided it'd just draw attention. "There's a cluster without the marks across the way. They'd be a good place to check, right?"

"As long as the men in white don't get to them first," he replied, smiling slightly at her. "Don't worry about it. If they were going to hurt us outright, they would've done it before, in the street."

But that was what bothered him; that they had no idea what those men were waiting for.

"Especially with my great show of tact." She agreed, her attention on the ground for a moment. "What if the helmets just maybe, control them somehow? Like drones or something?" She was starting down the stairs now.

"Could be. But there's nothing unusual about those helmets. 'Course, we didn't get a look until after whatever was in it vanished..." He followed to the stairs, taking one last look around. He tucked the amaranth sprig in his pocket with the sonic screwdriver.

She glanced back towards the kitchen and dining room when she got downstairs, but nothing had changed. Her hand hovering over the doorknob, Rose had the sudden image of opening the door to see one of the 'doctors' standing there. Shaking her head to clear it, she pushed the door open. "I'm sure you'll get a look in one." Rose told him, looking over her shoulder at the Doctor.

He raised an eyebrow when she paused, but didn't mention it, nodding to her remark. "I'm not sure if I should be hoping for that or not, yet." Following her onto the street, where those clustered groups of men in white were still haunting about.

"I wasn't 'hoping'," Rose told him as she fell back next to him. "Given what the usual is with you, it might as well be fact." A little bit of her tone was joking, but for the most part, she wouldn't disagree.

"Mm... You have a point," he smiled a little. "I don't try to, you know, but I have a sneaking suspicion we won't get anywhere if we don't find out who they are."

"D'you really think I'd be here if I thought you were trying?" She asked him, head tilted slightly. "Then it's time to meet the neighbors." Rose told him with a grin.

"Looks like. Hope they don't mind we didn't bring anything... we're the ones new to the neighborhood, after all." He grinned back, going to one of the doors near the center of the small cluster of unmarked houses and knocking.

There was the sound rushed movement from inside of the house, and Rose thought she saw something in one of the windows. Before she could point it out though, it had vanished, but a moment later the door was open a crack.

"I guess we're allowed in then." Rose said mostly to herself.

The Doctor peered at the crack for a moment before he pushed the door open slowly. "Looks like it..." He frowned. He wasn't sure what he expected here, but he stepped inside anyway.

The room was lit, but barely. There were a place settings out, but only one person sitting there, eyeing them. A few soft noises, and a whisper could barely be heard from upstairs.

Rose stayed close behind the Doctor. The woman seemed normal enough. "Hello?" She asked experimentally, but the woman didn't respond.

The Doctor looked around cautiously before stepping forward, enough to allow Rose in and for her to shut the door. Before those white things saw it open. "...Miss?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at the lack of response.

Once there was space, Rose closed the door, and once the door was closed, the woman seemed to relax some. "What do you want?" she asked, not entirely unfriendly, but businesslike.

"We want to know what's going on here," the Doctor replied - businesslike himself, but not unkindly. His tone couldn't be called gentle, but it was something close to that. "Who are those men with the masks on?"

"There's nothing going on." The reply was practiced. "They're the new doctors. They replaced the others last month. They are specialists in plague." Once again the response reeked of memorization.

"Why is there no one in the streets?" Rose asked her.

"So that the plague does not spread." Her answer was simple once again.

"There aren't any people in the other houses. The ones with white around the doorknobs. I know they can't all have died." He crossed his arms over his chest, and now he sounded a bit more stressed. Probably so that this woman would understand how important it was that he know what was going on. "They're not men, are they?"

"They're different." Was the woman's reply, and she rose to her feet, moving over to look out the window once more. "There's a plant they're growing, everywhere that it will take," Her voice was a conspirational whisper now, and she turned towards them. "They bring food around, in the mornings."

"It's amaranth, isn't it? The plant?" He reached into his pocket, taking out the small flower - slightly crushed from being in his pocket now. "It looks like this?" He was beginning to draw conclusions.

"Amaranth?" She saw flower and nodded. "Yes, that's it." She looked at them, at their strange clothes and finally asked. "Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor." He smiled very slightly. "This is Rose. We're here to help." The smile faded, and he slipped the flower back into his pocket. "Can you tell me what's happening to the people here?"

"Once the plague takes one no one sees the family again. That's all I know." Her voice was quiet again, and when there was a noise from upstairs, she couldn't help but glance upwards for a moment.

The Doctor looked up at the ceiling as well, and when he looked again at the woman, his expression had darkened somewhat. "Is there someone up there?" he asked. "Something?"

She motioned towards the table setting. "What do you think?" Her eyes fell to the floor, and she stayed silent for a few minutes. "When there's a death, they block the room t'keep the ghosts from escaping. They always know."

"The ghosts? What d'you mean, ghosts?" He frowned. Okay, well, it was the fourteenth century. But still. "How do they know there's been a death?"

"They just do." Was her response. "The ghosts of them that died. They make rackets in the room, eager to get out." A thought crossed her mind, "You said you're here to help. D'you mean to stop this plague?"

"I'm going to try," he replied softly. He knew he couldn't stop it, not the real thing, but he had a sneaking suspicion that those white-coated things weren't as innocent as they seemed. "I'll do my best. I promise."

"The new ones came from the south." There was accusation in her voice, "The ghosts didn't start till they came, up till then they stayed where they should." With that she moved towards the stairs, paying them no more mind, and having said all that she was going to.

The Doctor nodded, stepping back to allow her through. "..thank You," he said softly, thinking. Ghosts, and strange 'doctors' from the south... "I'm going to need another talk with those white doctors."

"At least that shouldn't be much trouble." Rose said as she peered out a window. "The ghosts... She probably means the helmet and such, but..." She drifted off in thought.

"Maybe... or maybe whatever's under the helmets." He frowned. "Let's go. Maybe I can get one of these things to tell me what they are." He had, notably, stopped referring to the white-clothed 'doctors' as if they were people.

"Right." Rose said, opening the door a crack and, when making sure none of the things were paying attention, walking out of it. Two or three were converged around the house they had been in earlier, but there was one alone down the road a bit.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, smiling a little. It was a fairly humorless smile, though. "Looks like somebody forget not to wander off."

He approached the lone one, hands in his pockets almost innocently. In reality, it was for quick access to the sonic screwdriver - just in case, it was practically his only weapon. Well, besides his mind.

"What are you?" He asked, point-blank.

"Who are you?" The figure asked him, much the same as the one had earlier. Rose eyed it. "Come on, you've got to be able to say somethin' other then that."

"You know," the Doctor said to Rose, "I can't even tell if this is a different one than before." Turning to address the 'doctor' again, he said, in an all-too good humored tone, "I asked first."

"We are doctors. We have come to make sure that the plague does not spread further. You should be in your house and not out here so that you do not risk infection." The voice sounded bemused when the thing spoke. Rose noted the use of 'we'.

"You're not doctors. Plague doctors wear black. What are you really?" A pause, and he added, "Why amaranth?"

"We are the new doctors." It ignored the mention of the amaranth as it spoke, repeating what it had said just a moment ago.

"New doctors.. fine, great. What are you doing to the people here?" He was beginning to get a mite irritated.

"We are doing nothing but monitering those with the plague and maintaining that it does not spread further." It remained silent and Rose looked over her shoulder at the others, who were dispersing back along the road.

"I don't believe you," the Doctor replied, shaking his head. Keeping his voice low so the other 'doctors' wouldn't come over. "What are the 'ghosts'?"

"The spirits of those who have been killed of the plague. We maintain that they stay in the room where they left the body so that they cannot cause duress to those who have survived them."

"But why are they there? How do you make them stay?" This was a puzzle. And, evidently, the Doctor was determined to berate, question, and force the answers out of this other doctor.

"That is to no concern to any other then us doctors." The monotone voice continued to sound bemused at itself. "Its basis is need to know."

"Well, I'm the Doctor and I need to know," he insisted, scowling at the doctor-thing.

It looked at him, and if it could grin it would have. "You are not a doctor, those who need to know, know." It made to turn away and finish its walk along the street.

The Doctor frowned, glaring at its back. "I'll find out what you're up to," he promised. If he were the sort of man who swore a lot, he probably could have come up with a lot of creative invectives for those things, but as it was, he remained very quiet. Thinking. Very still.

Rose watched it's back as it left, before turning to the Doctor. After a few moments of watching him stand and think, the house with the mark that they had been in caught her eye. She realized they must have somehow known what happened, and her curiousity got the best of her to see if anything had been done in there. With a final look at the Doctor, she slipped a few feet away experimentally, then continued towards the house.

The Doctor didn't seem to notice her leave, thinking hard on what was happening. He was wracking his brain for something, anything that operated like this. Even using Earth plants in some fashion... But why? What for?

She took one last glance at him before slipping through the door and up the stairs. The room seemed to be how they'd left it, and she went in casually. Lifting the mask up, she was sure there was something to it. She sliced a finger on it somewhere, but didn't think anything of it, continuing to examine it. There had to be something, her mind refused to believe the bit of plantlife had made it move.

It took him several moments to realize that Rose had gone, looking around, startled. "Rose?" he called, turning to try and see where she had gone. "Rose?" Oh, no. Not again. Not here.

As she kept looking over the mask, she got an idea. 'You're not a doctor' the thing had said. Rose looked at the tipped over bed, and grinned at the white sheets. Holding the mask under the crook her arm, she managed to free a sheet from the bed. It seemed clean enough. Wrapping the mask in it to avoid suspicious from the doctors, she started back out of the room and downstairs.

The Doctor was still looking for her - he hadn't considered that she might go back to that house. It worried him, and then it confused him how much it worried him. "Rose?" Where did she go?

Almost at the doorway, Rose paused, looking at the bundle. They didn't seem to have done anything in here this time but, maybe if they saw her leave again... Unwrapping the blanket she put it around her shoulders, covering her clothes before putting the mask on. After a moment's thought she adjust to the blanket so it laid over her hair, then satisfied walk out of the house, and after a quick survey of the street, towards the Doctor.

The Doctor didn't notice her at first - he was looking around, and until she got closer, he thought she was just another one of those faux plague doctors. When he did notice, he snapped, "What now?" He didn't realize it wasn't a plague doctor, and he was not in the mood for more pretentious, heavy-handed mystery.

When the Doctor snapped she froze in her tracks, feeling odd at being on the recieving end of his anger, even just that little bit. Rose'd thought he'd recognize her, or even if he didn't that maybe she would play along a bit. For some reason her throat was tight, so she reached out a hand towards him.

He took a step back when it - he didn't realize it wasn't one of those things - reached out to him. He wouldn't risk that sort of thing. He'd been around diseases that took just a touch to transfer.

"What do you--" He broke off mid-sentence, realizing abruptly that the sheet she was wearing wasn't the same stuff as the others. "Who are you?" Well, it was a slight change, though the stress in his voice didn't fade.

When he backed away from her she let her hand fall. Was it really that good of a disguise? She couldn't work her arm back up to raise the mask and show him, but managed in a small voice, to say "It's me..."

"Rose?" A pause. "What.. what are you doing in that thing?" He sounded concerned. More worried than angry, now.

"I went back in to see if the ones milling about had done anything. It was all the same, I looked at the mask again, and then remembered what the one had said, and there was a white blanket in the room, so I thought we might be able to use it as a disguise, then I was at the door and thought if I put it on now I wouldn't draw attention and you said the helmet was just iron so..." She rambled on, the beak of the helmet pointing at the ground.

He glanced down the street for a moment, thinking. "..I thought you were one of them." It was as close as he was likely to come to admitting he'd been worried when she wandered off. "I keep telling you that rule number on is not to wander off."

"You were thinking, and standing too still and I didn't want to disturb you." She made her excuses, clutching the sheets from the inside. She'd just been trying to help, to not be in the way. "I'm sorry." Rose told the Doctor finally, face averted and fingers crossed behind the cloth. 'That I put it on before I left the house.' Is what she added silently.

He wanted to tell her that if she was sorry, she wouldn't keep wandering off... But that would be petulant. And he was not petulant. Most of the time. Anyway.

"Just lucky none of those things saw you... speaking of, d'you think they'll talk to you?" He seemed curious. And at least not mad anymore. It was a good thing.

"I don't know." She thought for a minute, "That was the idea I guess. The disguise seems to work well enough." Rose added, then looked over to one of the nearby doctors. "I guess I can try."

"..be careful. Don't go anywhere with them," he warned, frowning. He wasn't sure how much he liked this plan.

"I won't." Rose told him, "I'm not stupid." She moved towards the nearest thing, and doing her best to keep her tone similar to the ones she had heard, said simply, "Report."

The Doctor watched from a safe distance, ready to interfere if something went wrong. He had a bad feeling about all of this. A very bad feeling.

The thing that Rose approached merely tilted its head to her slightly, as if in askance. "Homes one through thirty-nine are secured," it said, in a flat monotone.

Rose was bit amazed that it seemed to be working, but managed to stay focused. She nodded, and once again in her monotone ordered, "Very good. Return to base for a two hour relief shift." It was pushing it, she thought, but if she could get it go to some sort of central hub, she and the Doctor could follow from a distance.

The thing hardly seemed to be looking at her. "Base..." A pause, and it resumed the monotone. "Base is too far. We all know. Base is too far."

She faltered for a minute, mind blank of what else to say. Finally, noting its seeming lack of attention, she thought of something, but couldn't bring herself to do it. "Correct. Base is to far, Carry one." Rose told it, before moving quickly away and back towards the Doctor.

"You are not connected to the Universal." The flat tone from the 'doctor' was raised in volume slightly. "We cannot feel you there." Now it was the real 'doctor' thing that reached out to her.

Rose stopped. For a moment she looked at him, trying to send a message she knew she had no way to, then she turned ubruptly. "There was an Encounter. Reconnection is needed, Lead?" Rose knew she should have run, was ready to, if 'lead' was not an option. It was the first bit of advice she'd gotten, 'Run'. She stayed just out of it's reach.

"Rose.." The Doctor was weighing whether or not to step in, wondering why Rose was still standing there. He didn't like this. Not at all.

"Come." That was all it said, turning to lead her away.

When it turned she shot a quick glance at the Doctor, urging him to follow, before turning to fall behind the fake doctor.

The Doctor nodded, stepping to the side of the street to follow where he was less likely to be seen. He was very, very glad that the thing didn't seem to be paying attention.

They walked for some time - at least ten or fifteen minutes - before they came to what appeared to be the destination. It was, startlingly, a grove of amaranth plants. They were all very large - in excess of six feet, they dwarfed both Doctor and doctors, along with Rose. Their bright color was a riot against the gray flagstones that they had pushed through in order to grow, the rubble of which lay around the roughly circular garden. The doctor that had led Rose there merely looked at her, as if expectant.

She moved slowly towards the center of the garden. She'd expected a building, had planned to take off the disguise and slip away once she'd gotten close. "So much for that" Rose muttered under her breath. Before she reached the center though, a wave of dizzyness hit her, and moving to lean on something to steady herself she collapsed at the edge.

The Doctor had been following behind, discrete, unwilling to show himself. Until she collapsed. Then he bolted forward, ignoring the doctor creature that was still standing there as he reached her. "Rose?"

He knelt beside her, pulling the mask off of her head as gently as he could. "Rose, can you hear me?"

Rose blinked, nodding. "Yeah..." Her head swam for a minute, but then cleared. As it did, she remembered where they were. She sat up, letting the sheet fall. Looking around, she tried to see where the thing she'd followed was.

The thing stood a few feet away, watching them. It didn't seem to be doing anything, though, merely... watching.

"You alright?" The Doctor asked, frowning. In this place, in this time... it worried him.

"Yeah, 'M fine." She told him, pushing her hair aside with the hand she'd cut earlier. Rose glanced over her shoulder at it for a moment as it watched. "We should probably get out of here before it decides to do something." She suggested slowly.

"Yeah." He was clearly distracted, though, looking at her. "...Rose, when did you cut your hand?" He asked the question very slowly, as if he didn't want to rush getting an answer.

She glanced at the cut for a moment, before waving her hand absently. "Prob'ly earlier, maybe when I was getting the mask." She started to get up, glancing at the creature again. "C'mon."

"When you were... right." He stood, though his voice didn't quite lose that tone, and he didn't seem as concerned about the doctors for the moment.

She led him away, looking over her shoulder to make sure it wasn't following. Reaching behind her she grabbed the Doctor's sleeve to hurry him along. "I'm fine, really. Probably just got a little hot under the helmet. That's all." She tried to reassure him.

The Doctor followed her - let her lead him, really. He was thinking over things again. "Okay. You say so." He smiled faintly, utterly forced.

"I do." She told him firmly, sighing afterwards as she realized he'd gone back inside his head. Rose led him along until they were about two crossroads away, and the doctor wasn't in sight and then turned the corner to wait there.

"..those doctors. I wonder what they really are," he muttered after a moment or two. "They insisted they're quarantining the infected dead, but we didn't see any bodies. For Dark Ages Europe, we're seeing a shortage of corpses." Morbid humor. Well, it kept him from worrying about Rose, anyway. Sort of.

"They said 'Base is to far'." Rose pointed out to him. "And something about, houses 1-30 being secured, or something like that." She pointed up after a minute, and something about me not being connected to the universal. That they couldn't feel me." She hoped something would sound familiar to him.

"The 'universal'? ..so they're all connected somehow. That explains why they were saying 'we' instead of 'I', anyway. And somehow the plants have something to do with it?" He was musing out loud... Not that it was abnormal, or anything. He tended to ramble a little.

"The plants are connected somehow. I think maybe they connect you to it somehow?" She did her best to brainstorm. Rose drew a blank beyond that, wondering how long they'd been there. It felt like hours.

"Could be, could be." The Doctor frowned, then nodded. "That's probably it. Something about that plant. We should try.." He looked at one of the clusters of things down the street. "Something else."

"Something else?" Rose asked, running through what they'd done so far. She leaned against the building. "So, not talking then?" She finally asked.

"Not talking. Wait here, dunno how they'll react." He flashed her a quick grin, sprinting towards the group of white-robed 'doctor's, skidding to a stop behind one of them.

"Oh, I'm going to regret this," he muttered to himself, reaching out and grabbing the helmet... and pulling up.

Rose had waited, and now stared open mouthed as the Doctor moved casually up to one of the things and pulled up the helmet.

When the helmet was lifted, a human head appeared below, some sort of electronics embedded into the back of the head, and face oddly contorted. A moment later hands shot up to pull the helmet back down, and the rest had turned towards him in one swift movement.

"Oh! Well, that explains some things. Hi!" He smiled and gave a little wave to the ones that turned towards him, taking a couple of quick steps back. "Are you cyborgs, or just having the electrical impulses of the brain altered and fiddled with?"

The moved to surround him, more quickly then they had been as they surveyed the streets. As if following a fresh order. The one who's helmet he'd taken off started towards where the amaranth had been.

Rose had started towards them, stopped halfway between where she'd been and where they were.

"Stay back!" He wasn't talking to them - he was talking to Rose, glancing at her over the shoulder of one of those things. "What do you want?" This he asked of one of those things. There was no clear leader.

"You have caused an interruptance." The thing told him, as they closed the circle. "You have caused an allowance to contamination. You will be withheld." One of them put a hand onto his shoulder.

"Withheld?" He asked, taking a step back, as if to dislodge the hand, though he couldn't get far enough back to do so without knocking into another one of them. "Really? No, what're you really up to?"

"You will cease." It told him flatly, and another took took hold of his other shoulder. Rose was still standing where she had been, about to consider throwing rocks at them to do /something/.

"I will? Really?" He sounded all too cheerful, and reached into his pocket, taking out the sonic screwdriver and pointing it at the one directly in front of him. The smile he'd maintaned through this faded, and his voice was much more serious. "I don't think so."

The movement of the doctors stopped, and the one in front of looked at the screwdriver. It hesitated. "You will come with us." It said in a different voice, demanding, that almost echoed. The others kept their hold.

"Will I? Alright, then." He grinned, but didn't let go of the sonic screwdriver. Evidently they were intimidated by it. He wasn't going to let go his advantage.

They moved into two rows, one each infront, and behind of the two holding his shoulders, and began moving forward. Rose followed after them.

The Doctor didn't resist, letting them lead him. Sometimes the only way to get to the bottom of something was, after all, to jump right in.

They walked for almost 10 minutes, through a twisted path, almost losing Rose as they turned finally into a small alley. They stopped just within the mouth, one stepping forward, standing for a moment, then vanishing. The rest moved to block the Doctor from the alley's entrance, before pushing him forward.

He raised an eyebrow at that, watching carefully. "What's in there, then?" He asked, standing his ground for the moment.

"There are no contaminants located within. GO." The last word had the same demanding tone that the other had used earlier, but this time it was coming from the one at his right shoulder.

"'Cept for me, right?" He grinned cheerfully and shrugged, stepping further into the narrow passage. He kept the sonic screwdriver in his grasp, ready in case he needed it.

As he stepped forward, a door became visible in the alley that had not been before. A hologram, hiding it. The doctor that had walked through was standing next to it, holding it open. Rose stayed nearby, just resisting calling out as he disapeared, waiting for the others to disperse.

"Oh, that's clever," he remarked, looking at the door before stepping inside, examining the edges of the hologram as he went. Perfectly blended. Well, then.

The room inside was rounded, white, and very clinical. There were a number of doors at various points, and a large, round platform in the center. One read 'Quarantine', the doctor who'd held the door led him towards one which was unlabeled, down a hall and finally left him at another door.

He looked at the door, then at the doctor. He'd kept an eye on the others, and the other doors, as he was led alone. "..what's in here?" He asked.

"You will be questioned." It told him in the usual, bemused monotone. Outside the others had left to their usual posts, and Rose was in the alley, looking into it curiously.

"Questioned. Really, now." He frowned, then sighed a bit dramatically. "What about? I really haven't got all day for this nonsense..."

"You will go into the room so that we may continue. NOW" Once again there was the demanding echo. It pulled the door open with a sudden force, the arm at an odd angle. Outside Rose had just gone through the hologram, looking at the door then stepping back and looking again.

"Yeah, yeah, okay," he said, glancing at the thing's arm before stepping in and remarking, "Might want to have that looked at. Arms don't bend like that." He was being rude again, but this time it was entirely on purpose.

The door closed behind him, and lights in the room went on. There was a simple chair in the center of the room, but walls were dark screens, a vague figure was visible on the screen in front of the chair. "SIT." It said.

"Oh, look. It's like an interrogation room! Am I under arrest?" He didn't sit down, though. "Who are you, then? HR?"

"IDENTIFY YOURSELF" The voice said again, the figure ignoring him as it now paced along the screens. Outside Rose ducked against the far wall as the doctor exited the door, she looked at it hesitantly.

He watched the figure carefully, leaning against the back wall. He was unwilling to sit where they told him to, at least for now. "I'm the Doctor. Who are you?"

"I am the controller, you are not one of my doctors." The volume of the voice had fallen. "What reason do you have for interfering in the wellbeing of this planet?" It asked, the figure on the screen as close as it could be to him.

"Not a doctor, the Doctor," he reiterated, shrugging at the next question. "I'm not interfering. You are. This technology is well beyond anything humans have even conceived of by now! What are you?"

"Meranon." The figure paced the screen again. "When we came across this planet it was plagued. We mean only to help. What are you doing here? We have seen you walk idly about, as if there were nothing wrong and going so far as to endanger one of the doctors."

"Meranon. How did you come here? Why?" He frowned, considering this. "What are you doing to the people here?"

"You are in our ship now. The Meranon are more then advanced in holographic implementation. There was life." The figure stops where it is, and stares at him. "We keep them safe, contained from the plague. Those who may be infected we quarantine. Their Doctors were ineffective, we helped them. We do no harm." Outside, Rose finally gets up the nerve to go through the door, and hesitates in the center of the room.

"I don't believe you," he replied flatly. "The woman in that house said that you're keeping ghosts in the house. What does that mean?"

"They are a superstitious people. We keep them out of rooms where the sick have died." Suddenly, the figure seemed to turn away, looking at something. Then it moved towards him, and the voice was loud again. "SO." was all it said.

"What?" He raised an eyebrow, looking at it and then the door briefly.

"YOU DO NOT WORK ALONE... DOCTOR." It was said as fact, and for a moment the figures concentration was elsewhere, it mimed typing something on a keyboard.

"No, I don't.." A pause, and he went to the door, glancing at the screen. "Where is she? Tell me where she is."

A portion of the screen flickered, showing the main room, Rose was trying one of the unmarked doors. Somewhere else on the screen, the meranon was looking at him again. "Tresspassing." The voice was quiet once more.

"Rose! If you do anything to her.." He pulled at the door, trying to force it open.

"She has come to us." Rose opened the door she'd been pulling on, going down the hall, the camera image flickered out. "That door leads to examination. If she is clean she will be released. You have yet to answer my questions."

"Let her go," he demanded, turning to the screen. "I'll answer your questions when she's safe."

"She will be let go when we are sure she is safe." The meranon retorted. "You, when you listen. Why are you here? You also have technology beyond this planet, but you used it to /threaten/."

"I used it to threaten because I don't know what you are," the Doctor said, glaring at the screen. "My ship brought me here because of the alien technology." Something like that.

"Why did you endanger our doctor?" It seemed indifferent to his stares, part of its attention on something in the room it was in.

"I wanted to know what it was, and it wouldn't tell me." He shrugged slightly. "I'm sorry, but I needed to know. Still do, really."

"We took in the doctors that were here before. They were foolish so we give them orders. When there is no more sickness we will show ourselves and release them. We will show the humans where they were wrong."

"You control them. Those chips in their heads, those are controlling them, aren't they?" He scowled, crossing his arms over his chest and taking a step towards the screen. "Do you mean to continue controlling them when this is over?"

"I am the controller." It reminded him, "If the humans realize their mistakes we will let them go. Would you interfere?"

"What if they don't realize their mistakes? Will you keep puppeting them? If you mean to, then I'll interfere. I'll go further - I'll stop you."

The screen flickered. "We mean only to help, to have them realize the dangers. Our planet was ravaged by plague, and it is why we wander. We will be to them what we had no one to be to us." The screen went completely blank, the figure clearing, and the door clicked. "You may go on your way, 'Doctor'."

"You can't force them to learn. Humans... they learn through experience. You can't make it happen," he said, frowning, looking at the door. "You can't save them all. It's ignorance to try."

"We will see." the voice came a final time. "But there are matters to attend to now, I have no more time to speak with you. There has been a contamination breech."

"Contamination..." He pulled the door open jerkily, stepping into the hall and running to the central area where the doors were. "Rose!?" He had a bad feeling about this, in his gut.

In the central area, Rose was being held by two of the doctors, just leaving the hallway she had went in. She just heard him, looking around she called back "Doctor?!" as they moved towards the marked door.

"Hold on!" He ran down the hall to the area where she was, grabbing one of the doctors by the shoulder and pulling them back. "Let her go," he ordered.

"She must be placed under quarantine." It allowed itself to be pulled back, but the other kept its hold. Rose attempted to struggle out of its grip. "They just keep saying the same thing" She told him, continuing to try pulling away.

"No she hasn't," he replied, his voice dangerous. He was still holding the sonic screwdriver, and now held it up. "Let her go, or I will make you."

The one he'd pulled off looked blankly at him, and Rose pulled away as the one still holding her displayed the same hesitation. She moved behind her Doctor. "She must be placed under quarantine" The nearest doctor insisted, though it stayed still.

"No. She musn't. I'll take care of her." He reached back, offering his hand to Rose. "You're going to let us leave now."

Rose took his hand as the doctors seemed to hesitate, and then nod. "You will leave." They told him. She nodded, "Yeah, bye." Her voice was quiet, and she was trying to fit thing together in her head.

The Doctor stepped back, turning to go to the door, leading Rose out to the alleyway. He didn't speak again, his expression drawn - serious.

Nothing stopped them as they left, and Rose clung to his hand. She didn't want to break the silence, acknoweledge the fact that somehow, once again, she'd done something stupid to need rescuing.

He didn't speak again until they reached the street, out of reach or hearing of those doctors. "When did you cut your hand?" He asked softly.

It was the second time he'd asked, she looked up at him. "Earlier. I told you, remember?" Her voice was almost casual, but something about his tone worried her. "In the house."

"On what?" He didn't look at her; he knew he couldn't hide his worry if he did, that dire concern, that memory that he'd told her they would be back soon, had promised Jackie to always bring her home, had sworn to keep her safe, and now... what could he do about this?

She turned her head to try to see his face. "The mask. When I went back in." Rose was trying to be coaxing now, something didn't feel right.

"..I'm sorry," he said, glancing at her only briefly. "Rose. I didn't... you're infected. That's what they meant." He kept his voice soft and flat, forcing down his concern.

She didn't know exactly what to say to that. Part of her wanted to hang onto his hand and another to snatch it away quickly. Rose looked at the ground. " 'S my fault then isn't it?" She didn't feel any different. "Rule 1?" Something in her refused to believe, and part of her said 'Never just tourists'.

"I keep telling you not to wander off.." His cheer was utterly false, and it failed all too quickly. He was silent for a long moment before adding, "I won't let anything happen. I won't allow it." And he meant it.

He could talk all he wanted about there being a time for people to die, a time for everything, and he was used to it, but... Not when it was Rose. He couldn't accept it when it was her.

Rose nodded, looking up at him. "I... know." Around them the sun was setting and the 'doctors' continued their wanderings. They carefully avoided the pair. She held his hand tighter.

He didn't let go of her hand, either. "There will be a way out of this." He refused to believe that there wasn't some way to stop this. "People survive plague. Always have."

"It's getting dark." Rose commented, nodding along vaguely as he spoke. For a moment she almost laughed then looked up at him. "Dinner." She muttered under her breath, looking back down as she shook her head at the ridiculousness of this.

It took him a moment to respond. "We forgot about it, huh?" He smiled very thinly. "..got a little side-tracked."

"Yeah..." Rose tried a half smile, "I figure the Tardis owes me a meal." It was easier to blame a ship for something to admit then to think about her diagnosis. It was somehow more alien an "We'll have to see about that when we get out of here." He didn't say 'if'. That would be admitting defeat.

"Yeah." She looked up with realization. "So, what did you find out? About the doctors, and those flowers?" Rose asked.

"I don't know about the flowers. The doctors are human, being controlled by alien technology." He shook his head. "They say they're trying to help." He tried not to sound as scornful as he felt of their methods, but couldn't help it.

"So, what're we going to do?" Rose asked him, "I mean, if they're controlling people..." She mused over what they knew, "Wait. There was, some sort of holo-thing or something over the door, right? What if there's one in those plants?"

"There could be. You're right! There could be." He smiled brightly, though it didn't last, looking around. "...shall we?"

"Of course." She told him, before glancing around their surroundings a bit. "But I hope you remember where it was."

"Oh, well, you know.. my memory." He smiled thinly, tapping his temple with the hand that wasn't holding hers. "I've got it."

"Alright then." Rose smiled at him as they continued walking. When they reached a corner she took a wild guess, point up one of the streets at random.

The Doctor nodded, walking down the street she indicated. "This is the one. Sort of like one of those old-timey preserved villages in your time, isn't it? Well, without the actors.." Keeping things light. No reason not to, since they were going to make it out fine. They had to.

"A bit more authentic then I'd prefer." Rose said, scrunching her nose as they passed a window. "Speaking of... Can't help but wonder, and it's always been giant leaps about but... Do they have 'preserved cities' of my time?"

"Well, they did.. before everybody got moved off of Earth, they had this great big city they were trying to preserve, kept.. propping it up with whatever they could." He smiled a little. "They even tried to rebuild London on one planet, billions of years later. And- oh, yeah, there's some planet out there with a great Hollywood sign up on a hill."

Rose looked at him a little disbelieving, "Planet Hollywood?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "And those couple dozen New Yorks." She remembered.

"Oh yes. Sixteen New Yorks! Well, at last check. They keep making new ones, it's hard to keep up.. couple of New Londons, too, they're pretty industrious. And can't seem to come up with original names..."

"Well I'd imagine you'd run out eventually anyway." Rose said, "Or start nameing places 'Fred and Mike and Barbara." She thought she could maybe make out the greenery in the distance.

"You know, you'd be surprised. I think there actually is a Fred out there somewhere. Sort of hick-ish though. Middle of nowhere bit, not much of a surprise with a name like Fred. Can you imagine, I think there was someone named Fred there, too.." He was keeping an eye out for those doctors, but they hadn't come close again.

"Probably didn't have trouble remembering where he lived." Rose said, "Or spelling it anyway. Sounds sort of like a bad joke though..."

"Sort of was a bad joke.. really happened, though. You humans are strange." He made a face a bit. "Fred from Fred. Weird guy. Owned a shop."

"Lemme guess, called 'Fred's'?" Rose's voice had a knowing tone. "You can't tell me no one else in the universe is bad at naming things."

"Well... yeah, alright, you have a point." He smiled a little. "There's a planet in.. oh, I think they just called it Sector something-or-other. Anyway, completely covered with water, except for this little tiny island. Just the one. And it's named for their word for, I kid you not, water."

"Well they can't have much else to name it with then, can they?" For a moment Rose hadn't quite gotten what he'd said, and almost responded with 'earth?', never good to fall behind in a conversation. They were almost to the amaranths now.

"You know, you'd be surprised. By the time I got off of that world, I thought they named everything backwards.. oh, we're here." He nodded to the bushes. There didn't seem to be any of those doctors around, so he stepped forward, right up to the plants.

"Can you notice anything?" She asked, staying beside him. Rose held out her free hand, waving it around a bit. "I guess I wasn't paying much attention when I was in there..."

"..I don't know. Hang on.." He walked into the bushes, pushing aside some branches to get further in.

Rose kept close behind him as he moved in. She wondered at how the plants were supposed to help them with... whatever it was they were doing.

"Oh, hold on. This... Well, then. What're you?" He was talking to a small, round metal divice in the center of the stand of amaranth. It looked like a small, rounded done, barely higher than one's ankles.

She pushed back some branches and looked down at it from behind him. " It must have something to do with, that Universal they mentioned." Rose said as she blinked at the small dome..

"That is what it looks like," he said, taking out the sonic screwdriver and tapping the metal dome with it. "This must be what's controlling those doctors.."

Her head swam for a moment, and Rose sat down, trying not to let him notice. "But, why leave it here, in the middle of these plants?" She asked him.

"Maybe to hide it. Maybe... the controller said that their planet was decimated by a plague. Maybe the plants remind them of home." He frowned slightly, looking around the featureless dome for seams, handles, or bolts.

Rose played idly with a leaf that was within her reach as she sat. "Maybe... Doesn't explain the 'ghosts' though..." She thought for a minute, and unsure asked, "Does it?"

"The controller said they used the 'ghosts' as a way to keep people out of rooms where people had died," he replied, shaking his head. "I'm not sure I believe them, though."

"We're going to have to go back there again at some point, aren't we?" Roses voice was casual, "You need more answers."

"Probably. I need to know if these things need to be stopped." A pause, and he added, "I don't like what they're doing." As if that wasn't obvious.

"Your judgement hasn't been wrong yet." Rose told him, silently adding, 'when it wasn't something I was bullying you into like Adam and my Dad...'.

"Not often." He grinned briefly. He was still looking at the thing. "..there's no way to get into this. Hm."

Rose thought for a moment. "If we hatted another of those things, when they came back over we could look and see what they do with it." She suggested.

"Good idea! Don't think the controller will like that... But he should have just told me." He smiled faintly.

She gave him a small smile as she stood back up. "Some things just don't know when it's the time to rattle off their whole plan I guess." Rose joked.

He chuckled, standing up himself. "They really should know better. I did warn them..." And once he'd warned them, he had little reason to consider their feelings in the matter.

"How d'we want to work this then? Should I go get one so you can stay here and see what they do?" Rose asked him.

"That could work. You're up to it?" That was a double question, wasn't it?

"Yeah." Rose nodded to him. "Course." She turned to leave the plants and find the nearest doctor, there were a few on the street.

He waited, stepping back into the bush so that he wouldn't be easily seen. Trusting Rose to get one of those things to come here.

There was one close, and facing away from her, so she moved quickly. She had to jump one she had hold of the helmet to get it off his head, but then tossed it towards the amaranth. It went to retrieve it's helmet almost frantically, moving towards the dome after it had been replaced on his head.

The Doctor heard it in the bushes and waited, very still, for it to come. Good work, he thought but obviously didn't say.

Once it reached the dome it crouched, kneeling on the ground ant tilting it's head so the helmet's beak touched the top of the dome. There was a brief crackle of electricity and it stood, turning to leave the bushes once more. Rose had moved to one side of the grove, waiting until it left.

"So that's what it is!" The Doctor exclaimed, once the lowercase-d doctor had gone. "It.. it recharges them or something. I wonder if it's controlling them, too..?"

Rose moved back through the amaranth to the capital-D Doctor. "Didn't get enough information?" She asked once she'd arrived.

"I think I've got the handle of it... the computer chips in their heads control them and give them a connection to this thing. And to the controller." He paused, then added, "The helmet's a conduit, as well as protecting them from infection. Probably the electrical charge powers the chip and zaps any sign of infection... Something to that effect."

"Which'd explain why they come right over after the helmet gets knocked off!" Rose said, feeling a bit triumphant. She was still curious about the plants though.

"Exactly. And I think, knowing that, we might want to go have a talk with the controller again. He'll answer my questions." There was an unspoken 'I'll make him' implied by his tone.

Rose nodded, "Yeah." She was suddenly tired, but she knew it would be quicker to go now and have this finished.

He smiled briefly, grabbing her hand to lead her out of the grove, ignoring the clingy branches. They had to go back to the controller, to stop this.. So he could help Rose properly, not deal with these issues.

The walk there seemed quicker, and Rose was glad that the Doctor seemed to know where he was going in the dark streets.

He was getting used to the place - something he didn't particularly like, but it was useful. They reached the hologrammed-over door, and he pushed it open with perhaps more force than was strictly required. "This way," he muttered, leading the way down the hall to the door wherein he had first met the controller.

Rose stayed close to him as they moved, half expecting one of the doctors to come and interfere. When they finally reached the door it was unlocked, and before it had even opened a voice said, "YOU"

"Yeah, me again! Been a while, hasn't it? How've you been?" His tone was cheerful, and he spoke quickly, opening the door and stepping inside. He wasn't smiling, though.

"YOU WERE ALLOWED LEAVE AND EVEN LET TO TAKE HER, WHY DO YOU RETURN?" There was annoyance in the voice and the vague figure was a bright red on the screen. Rose moved to follow him inside.

"Allowed? Let? What made you think you could stop me if you tried?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "I came back because you didn't answer my questions. You will now."

The voice calmed, though the figure still blazed red. "Ask your questions. We have nothing to hide from you, and the sooner to be rid of you once you are satisfied."

"What is your aim here? What are you trying to do?" He doubted very much that it was merely to help... since when had his luck turned that way?

"The primary mission is to help them to end their plague, then we intend to show ourselves and offer guidance for their other ventures, so they may learn from our mistakes instead of ours, through any means neccessary." The figure looked at them both carefully.

"You mean by force. You mean to force the human race to follow you." He didn't phrase it as a question, his tone flat.

"For their own good." The figure said emphatically. Rose was leaning against the wall, watching. She listened to the two speak, but in her mind, 'But you don't.' repeated over and over.

"Taking away free will isn't in anyone's best interests. You just want a new world of your own." It was an accusation.

"If we wanted the planet for ourselves, why try to stop it's plague? Why not them die here and come after they have rotted away?" The figure had a hand up on the screen.

"You're smarter than that. Plague doesn't kill everyone! It only kills about thirty percent of the population. And that's where you come in. Ready to lead, when the people's rulers are dead or in disgrace. Ready to take over... right?"

"Why not?" It asked, pacing along the screen once more. "I suppose you would tell us to leave now, to pack up our things and go back to the stars. That's it right? Appearing out of nowhere and causing trouble."

"That's me. I come in and get you to stop changing things around, you do, everybody's happy. You don't, and things get complicated." His small smile wasn't at all pleasant.

"A question for you then, Doctor." It eyed him from the screen, "If we do, what do you do to stop the plague? Parade it through the streets a time or two more?"

"The plague stops. It ends on its own. They do that." A pause, and he added, "I've been to the future. This ends. Humanity survives. It doesn't need help." This, at least, he didn't say unkindly.

The figure nodded, as if suddenly the universe had unfolded all of its secrets to it. "A time traveler. This makes sense now. You always see the bigger picture." The last line it spoke with distaste.

"It helps, yeah. Gives good perspective." He smiled, but it fell quickly. "Don't like that?"

"Our experiences have not been the best." The figure said icily. "But there are none of us here that you can harm, only the humans we control that you are so eager to have us leave be. You have your own problems, traveler."

"Yeah, I do. But I'm taking care of this now." He paused, then asked, "Why the amaranthus, anyway? Just curious."

The figure looked away from him, and down a bit. "The plants?" It looked up partially, "We called then superstitious but... there was some writing we found..." It stopped, turning away from them.

"What writing?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "From here?"

"From here." It agreed. "A... story of sorts. 'Rose and an Amaranth'." It looked ashamed at itself, either for the plant or for talking about them with someone who had more or less said 'I'm bringing you down, but in the meantime...'.

"'Rose and an Amaranth'?" A slight frown at that, wondering. "What is it? I mean, what does it say?"

"Why should it matter to you?" There was a bit in its voice. "It stands for immortality, a message that we would help them to live, keep them from fading now. You would stop us, so do it." The screen stayed on but figure retreated to a seat in the room, or so it's next stance would suggest.

"I'm curious." He shrugged. "And you're right. I would stop you. Because if you control them, take their free will, then they won't last. They won't build all the great things they're going to build. They're innovative. Don't ruin that. I don't want to harm you."

The figure turned in their direction, and stood, a paper in its hand. "Then make a deal with us traveler. Let us stay until the plague has gone and we will leave then, and give you the writing now."

A pause. He looked at the figure as if peering at something new and unknown. "..you want to make sure they survive, don't you?"

Suddenly the bright red that had been the figure faded, and what was left was creature with elongated limbs and dark, overlarge eyes. "Yes." It said, after what seemed like a considerable period of time. Rose had sat down, leaning against the wall, forehead pressed against the screen.

The Doctor nodded. "...alright. You leave once the plague is over. See for yourself that they survive." He glanced at Rose briefly, wanting to be sure she was alright.

"The paper will be in the entryway." it promised, making a sort of elegant bow. Rose didn't seem to notice him, her mind focused on the fact that suddenly the room seemed pretty hot and the screen wasn't very cool.

He nodded again. "Alright. Thank you." He made a short, perfunctory bow before turning away, kneeling next to Rose. "..are You alright?"

Brought back to the current situation, Rose blinked for a minute. "It's hot." She told him, then glanced around the room. "You done already?" She gave a half smile. "That was quick." Rose made an attempt to get up.

"Yeah... didn't go badly at all. Now we can get out of here!" He forced himself to sound a bit more cheerful than he felt, going to help her up.

By use of his arm she managed to get herself up fairly easily. She gave a little wave to the figure once she was standing before focusing her attention on the door. "I can't tell if it feels like we've been here for a few minutes, or hours." Rose confided in the Doctor.

"Not too long," he said by way of reply, smiling slightly. "Can't keep you from home too late, you know. Jackie would murder me." He pushed the door open, glad that it didn't give any resistance. This deal had been genuine - that was satisfying, at least.

Rose leaned on him a little as they made their way along. She thought some sort of joke was neccessary but couldn't find the right words. "I think she'll be suspicious when I get home from 'dinner' starving." Was what she finally came up with.

"I'll tell her we got chased off... happens often enough." He wasn't smiling now, leading her out and to the main area, then to the door. Wondering where the 'writing' would be.

Rose nodded in agreement. The writing was on a piece of paper in the middle of the room. It was slightly crumpled, and the paper yellowed. She looked at it quizzically.

The Doctor picked up the paper, reading over it quickly. "So that's why. The flowers." He folded it and put it in his pocket, frowning. His expression when he did was the very careful blank that meant that he was very upset.

She looked up at him, wanting to ask if there was something wrong but realizing the obvious. "You don't usually get notes after." Rose tried to joke, but she ended up sounding worried.

"..they like poetry. Maybe they think I do, too." He couldn't quite summon a smile. He did like poetry. But not when it was like that.

"Oh." Was all she managed to say in response to that. Rose couldn't help but notice that everything looked the same as they had on the streets, she guessed she should've paid more attention in the room.

"..don't worry about it. We should get back to the TARDIS." He was worried, and the TARDIS was always his sanctuary when something was wrong.

"Okay." Rose told him as the made their way through the dark streets. It seemed like almost no time at all before there was a familiar shape right before them.

The Doctor unlocked and opened the door, stepping back to let Rose in before following and closing the door behind him. "..and we're through there." Not entirely. But the first crisis had passed; in his mind, rather the lesser one.

Once she was in Rose shot the console an accusing look, before moving over a nearby column. It proved to be rather cold and she closed her eyes for a moment.

"How d'you feel?" he asked, looking at her. He wasn't entirely sure what to do - illness like this he wasn't used to, and he didn't know if the hospitals at her home would know how to handle this.

"Still hot..." Rose trailed off before yawning. As an afterthought she added, "A little tired." She wasn't quite sure home was the best place to go right now either.

"You should lie down. I'll see if I can find something to help... You know, I never looked into this much. This time period." He meant 'plague', but he wasn't quite willing to say it. "Is that weird? I think it sort of is..." He was rambling again. Defense mechanism?

She nodded, "That sounds like a good idea." Starting for the doorway she turned back. "The whole thing seems weirder then normal..." Rose trailed off.

"..it's just because you've got a fever. They mess with your mind, you know." He smiled briefly, hardly felt. "You'll be fine." He had to tell himself that, too.

Rose nodded in agreement as she trailed off, the first door she opened had a bed in it, and she collapsed into it thankfully, staying awake just long enough to pull the blankets over herself.

The Doctor went looking for something to help. The TARDIS was, after all, very big and very old - there had to be something on here. Hadn't he had enough humans inside that he would have at least some... painkillers or something?

Well, he wasn't quite sure. Which was why he was looking.

It took him a couple of hours, periodically checking in on Rose, to find anything that looked like a fever reducer. It would help. He didn't have anything for plague, of course - he wouldn't have put it past himself or his previous companions, but it was doubtful from the start - but he could at least treat some of it.

They said that the Black Death had contributed to a greater incidence of a mutated gene that prevented and got rid of plague in people from Britain. Hopefully that would hold true for Rose.

As the time passed Rose had grown more restless in her sleep. The blankets were askew, somehow equally wrapped around her and tossed off to the side. She was drenched in sweat, and had started dreaming.

"Doctor!" she called out as she tossed, almost a moan at first, but then again, louder "Doctor!" She was almost thrashing in her sleep as she called out.

He heard her, bolting to the room and going to the bed. "Rose? I'm here," he told her, though he knew, more objectively, that she had no way of knowing he was there. She was asleep, wasn't she? "I'm right here."

When he spoke her eyes opened, though she almost looking through a haze, still dreaming. "No!" Rose shouted as she him, shaking her head. "Doctor!" she called again, in her haze begging for the past two weeks to have been a dream.

He took a step back - knowing she was dreaming, feverish, but it stung. "..it's me, Rose. It's the Doctor." But not her Doctor, and that was all too clear.

She called out one more time before falling back into sleep, her eyes tearing. But it was only to stir again a minute later, eyes still closed but muttering. " 'S allmyfault..."

"No, Rose..." He wanted to reach out to her, let her know he was there, but he didn't know if he should or not. If it would be help or hurt. "It's not your fault," he said anyway.

Rose continued muttering as she turned in the bed, but most of it was nonsensical, the only words that could be made out were 'sorry' and 'gone' both repeated a number of times. At one point she stopped flat on her back, holding her hand out as she had when the vortex was in her.

"Rose..." He settled not far from the bed, sitting on the floor and leaning against the wall. When she held out her hand like that, he leaned over, touching her shoulder lightly. It hurt in a way that he didn't entirely understand.

When he touched her shoulder the arm fell, crossing her chest and ending with her hand on his. "Sorry" Came again, in another strain of gibberish, her head turned to the other side of the bed as she said it.

He watched her, listening to her. Sitting by the wall, he kept a careful eye on her. He refused to leave - even if she didn't seem to want him there, he couldn't go. Something could happen.

After awhile, she settled some, when she finally managed to move from her fevered sleep she was on her side facing him, an arm hanging over the edge of the bed.

The Doctor watched, waiting for her to wake. So afraid that she wouldn't. When she seemed close to wakefulness, he asked, tentatively, "Rose..?"

Her eyes opened slowly, blinking every few seconds to try to accustom them to the light. A few moments later they were drawn to him. "Doctor." Rose said smiling slowly.

"..welcome back," he said, smiling very slightly. It was a worn sort of smile, but sincere. He was glad to see her awake. "Feeling better?"

"A little..." Rose trailed off, searching the Doctor's face as if there was something she was trying to remember.

"Good! That's good." His smile faltered slightly under her state. "..what?" Blink.

Rose turned her body, trying to manuever her legs off the side of the bed. Her eyes remained fixed on his face, and she stayed silent in concentration.

He watched her, unsmiling now. "...what? Did I do something wrong?" That sort of a look concerned him.

She shook her head a little, eyes still fixed. Rose managed to stand up, albeit a bit shakily, and took a tentative step towards him.

"Somethin' on my face, then?" Looking up at her from where he was sitting. "..probably shouldn't be standing up just yet.." That was a bit of a weak protest, as he wasn't sure what she was doing.

In a way that was half walk and half fall she managed to reach him. Once she was close enough she hugged him tightly, resting her head on his shoulder.

He blinked, surprised and, for a moment, confused. Once he realized what she was going, he put his arms around her gently. "..hey. You're all right," he muttered. Unsure what had brought this on, but he didn't comment on that.

Rose didn't know how exactly she could explain it. She had just suddenly felt that hugging the time lord was what needed to be done.

The Doctor didn't protest - the comfort was, really, welcome, though he was still worried about her. In the wake of her dreaming words, this less-alone feeling was a change for the better. "..are You that glad I found a fever reducer?" He asked. A bit of a light joke, there.

"Needed it." Rose said softly, meaning the hug, but not saying which of them. She didn't seem in much of a hurry to pull away. On one hand, she'd used up a bit of energy to get there, and it probably didn't help much that she was pretty comfortable now.

He wasn't going to push her away, either. She was sick, after all. Nevermind that he quite liked the comfort, weren't you supposed to mollycoddle the ill and injured? He'd never caught on to that before, really. "..lucky I'm here, then," he muttered, in his usual joking tone, though a bit more gentle than it normally was.

After a few more moments one of Rose's pockets broke into a rather loud, and not very catchy song. Begrudgingly pulling back to take the phone out of her pocket, she looked at it blurrily.

"..I Think your mum's wondering where exactly we went to dinner," he said, smiling slightly and looking at the phone.

Rose sat back, debating for a moment or two whether or not to open it. Finally she pushed it towards him. "I'll sound sick." She argued.

"So you want me to answer it? And talk to your mum?" He sounded incredulous, but took the phone - mostly because she had a point. And because Jackie would probably keep calling if they didn't answer. "I can't believe I'm doing this..." But he flipped open the phone anyway, and just to be safe - and perhaps for the comic relief - held it a couple of inches away from his ear.

"Rose!" Jackie's voice came out of the speakers rather loudly, "What do you mean, 'out for dinner'? Mickey's left about a dozen messages, it's past midnight, and I just know you've got something to do with your Doctor and his box being gone! There're restraunts here, you don't need to go galivanting off across the universe for food, there's nothing wrong with the chip shop down the street-" Jackie paused to take a breath, and Rose gave him a look that said it was probably now or never.

The Doctor stared at the phone for a moment before he dared to speak up. "Jackie? Hi!" His tone was cheerful, probably because he was afraid of death-by-poisoning if he let on that something was off. Not that death-by-poisoning wasn't a valid concern.. anyway. "It's the Doctor." Like he needed to clarify. It could've been worse, of course; well, it could've been Jack. There was a terrifying thought.

Jackie's paranoia had grown somewhat since her daughter had started traveling. It was for this reason that the cheerful tone probably backfired. "What's happened to Rose?" Her voice was flat, and there was a statement in the question. After she asked it she seemed to be readying herself for another onslaught.

The Doctor winced. Well, a little exaggeratedly, for effect. "Nothing's happened, just a... slight miscalculation, and we'll be on our way back in no time!" He really was trying. Well, sort of. "We got held up a bit. Nothing out of the ordinary..." Except the plague business. But like hell he was going to tell Jackie about that.

"If it's nothing out of the ordinary, why can't she answer her own phone?" Jackie's tone was accusing, and she was currently pacing the kitchen as she spoke. Rose gave an apologetic look to the Doctor.

He was trying to think fast - something he was ordinarily very good at, but he was not adept at, well... he made a bit of a face, mouthing the word 'domestics' at Rose and rolling his eyes. At least he was better at it than his, er, previous incarnation. "She's resting, it was... Well, when I say nothing out of the ordinary, I mean for us, which means there was a lot of running about involved, and some very complicated jumping and whatnot. Also trees and things." He was making it up as he went along.

Jackie didn't bother to hide her skepticism. "Complicated jumping, and trees." She gave in though, and finally sighed. "She trusts you." She said with a hint of distaste, "But I want her back before morning, do you hear?"

He smiled a bit. "I trust her, too. Absolutely. Morning, then." He nodded, even though obviously Jackie couldn't see that. "Don't wait up," he added, as a joke, even though he had a distinct feeling Jackie wouldn't care for it.

Jackies response was to promptly hang up the phone on her end. "Went that well?" Rose couldn't help but ask, she had a sheepish grin. She knew she should've been the one getting chewed out.

"Umm. Depends on your definition of 'well'," he replied, though he was still smiling. He liked Jackie, honestly, but sometimes it was difficult to resist messing with her. And by 'difficult' he meant 'impossible'. "We'll know it didn't if she tries to lock you in the flat when we get back."

He was still looking at the phone, pressing a few buttons. Usually the thing was a little silly, but right now? Helpful!

"What're you doing?" Rose asked as she watched him pressing the buttons. A bit of her brain far in the back was working on how to get out of the locked flat if that did arise.

"Looking something up.. lucky I can still access the internet from here. Do sort of wish I hadn't come up with that bit to let your mum call..." He was joking, of course, half his attention on the conversation and the other half on the phone.

"I'd think they'd go together." Rose said as she leaned against the wall. She noticed with interest that the blankets still seemed to be attached to her.

"They would.. which makes it hard to be thankful for the internet bit," he replied, grinning and glancing at her. Something almost camp-ish about them sitting next to one another, leaning on the wall, her still with blankets on.

She leaned against him a bit, trying to make out what was on the screen of the phone. When she didn't manage, Rose stayed where she way anyway.

"..didn't know WebMD had an article about plague," he muttered, with a sort of little half-smile. He didn't mind her closeness - it made him feel a little better.

"Huh..." Rose said simply. "What does it say?" She asked a couple seconds later. Mentally she was a bit amused by the fact that even he sometimes resorted to looking things up online.

"Well, it's not a friendly disease," he remarked, smiling slightly. Relieved, a bit, reading the article. There were treatments, then. He knew there must be, but... "Treated with antibiotics, though, apparently. So it can't be that bad." He made light of it because it had scared the hell out of him. He was just glad she was conscious.

Rose bit her lip, looking over to him slightly guiltily. "I think I knew that." She said very softly, probably a mention in history when they'd covered it. A bit of human braggery that 'we're ready now'.

He would have shrugged, but he didn't want to dislodge her from her spot, looking at her briefly. "Well, you're sick. Makes it hard to think sometimes."

"Yeah...'Guess." She still felt that if she'd remembered before, it would've saved some grief. "So... When would be the best place to go?"

"Well.. they'd have it in your time, but I don't want to dodge Jackie," he smiled a bit. "So I think maybe... 1950? That sounds about right. Good time for antibiotics; they were just starting to figure them out."

"Wouldn't it be a better idea to go later, when they know what they're doing?" Rose asked hesitantly. She tried to remember if she'd heard anything in particular about medicine in the 50s.

"Nah - streptomycin was invented in '47, and that's what they use to treat plague... Well, and tuberculosis, but we haven't got that problem.."

"Alright then." Rose said, "I trust you." She was staring at a leg of the bed as she spoke. It reminded her of something, but she couldn't figure out what.

He smiled. "Good. I'm glad." He meant that, too.

She stayed there, silent for a few moments. "Shouldn't we..." Rose motioned to the door. She didn't make a move to get up though.

"..yeah, probably." But he wasn't moving, either.

"Okay... Jus' checking." She told him as she turned back to the bed leg.

"Yeah.. seem to be having a motivation problem." He smiled a little. Amused, maybe. Much more cheerful now that he was reasonably sure she would be alright.

She looked down at her side for a minute, before locating her hand, and a few moments later his. Taking it, Rose put her other hand onto the ground for leverage.

He glanced at her, then at her hand holding his, still smiling. Odd but comfortable, he figured. "You want your phone back?" He asked, breaking the soft silence.

"Kay." She said, taking it, and then putting a bit more effort into the whole standing up thing.

He blinked, then realized what she was, well, trying to do, and stood up himself, helping her up gently.

With something higher to pull herself up, Rose was soon standing next to him. She took a step towards the door.

"You alright to be walking around?" He asked, raising an eywbrow and going to open the door.

"Yeah." She stayed behind him, a bit further then usual as she wasn't quite up to speed though of course. Once she reached the door there'd be walls to lean on.

He didn't let go her hand, not wanting to leave her in the hall and end up finding her still there hours later or something. That would probably be bad.

She managed to catch up, and between his hand and the wall to keep an okay pace. Rose gave him a small smile.

He smiled briefly in return, leading her to the main 'room' of the TARDIS before going to the controls. Levers and dials were used, as he tried to get the TARDIS moving in a more-or-less accurate way.

Once they reached the main room Rose sat down on the single seat. She wasn't quite sure how rocky it would be, and didn't quite want to try working her way back up from the floor.

"I'll try and keep us in one piece this time," he told her, as the TARDIS made the characteristic 'we're traveling now' sound and the whole thing shook a bit. Time and space travel did have some turbulance, after all.

Rose nodded, holding onto the seat and managing to stay upright. There'd definitely been bumpier trips, and she managed by force of will to keep her lunch off the console.

The Doctor was very, very grateful for that. So, one might imagine, was the TARDIS. "I'll go have a look around... it's probably best if I get the medicine and come back.." He was thinking, frowning slightly.

Rose thought it over. On one hand, he'd be much quicker without her along. On the other...well, she figured there was as good a chance of something happening either way. She spotted a phone on the console, and fishing hers from her pocket, held it towards him again. "Here." Rose wasn't quite sure what it would do, but it was something anyway.

He blinked at the phone for a moment before taking it. "..what, d'you want me to call your mother if there's an emergency?" It was a joke, honestly.

Rose shrugged, not quite sure herself. She grinned though, "You don't think she'd be useful if you called, 'I'm in the 50s to pick up strep-amawatsit 'cause your daughter has the plague, but the medical supply's being held by a martian'?" She realized, with a sad thought, the seeming likeliness of such an event.

"Well, you never know," he replied, glancing at the console briefly to make sure they had, in fact, gotten to the right time. "She could scare them off. She does yell a lot over the phone. At me, anyway."

Rose nodded. "Come to think of it... that'd probably work." She smiled at the mental image of it.

"So in a pinch, that's my backup. Call up your mum and get her to yell at anyone who tries to get in my way." He smiled, pausing before adding, "Come to think of it, the cell phone might scare them off. 1950, remember."

"Not if it's aliens." Rose pointed out to him. "They'd just be surer that something was up. Then you need the yelling."

"Good point. I'll keep my finger on the speed dial." Hang on. "Which button is your mum's, again? If I get Mickey on the line by mistake, I'm hanging up."

"One." She told him, "Put her number in it before I even got to look at it. Mickey's three." Rose added with a grin, "But yeah, he wouldn't be as much help."

He smiled. "No, but it might be worth the amusement..." He thought about that for a second, then added, "So if we get back and he keeps calling, you know, don't be surprised." Ah, there was the Doctor's mean streak.

"Nah, our luck he'd call next planet we get to, ducked behind somethin' or another." Rose told him, leaning on a bit of the console without any switches or buttons to hit.

"Oh, probably. Should remember to turn off the ringer next time we go somewhere dangerous." He shrugged, glancing at the phone in his hand. "Anyway, I should go get your medicine. Be safe, right?"

"Promise." She told him with a nod. "You too." Rose added under her breath. I'll sit here and guess what stuff does."

"Don't press any buttons," he warned, giving her a quick wave and going to the door, disappearing into the 1950s outside.

She rolled her eyes as he walked out, looking around console. Rose resisted the urge to flip a switch instead, just because he hadn't specified, but knew, her luck she'd somehow get stuck somewhere.

It wasn't exactly unlikely - knowing the TARDIS, it wouldn't be all that nice about it. And then the Doctor would be stranded.

Speaking of, it took him a bit to get back - he wasn't sure himself how long it had been, but eventually he re-entered the TARDIS, a bit snowy but no worse for the wear, bearing a paper bag. "No aliens!" He reported.

"Real snow this time then?" Rose asked him casually. She was still awake, and had given up on figuring out actual uses for the levers. She pointed to small, greenish button near the top of the console. "That's Bob." Rose told him informationally.

"Yeah! It's December out there! Didn't know I'd landed in December. Bit too much snow for my taste, but Alaska was worse.." He smiled brightly, blinking when she announced the name for the button. "...you named the button?" He asked, puzzled.

Rose nodded easily, and pointed to a nearby switch. "And that's Pearl." The switch was a rather worn brown shade. She shrugged, "I was bored."

"Bob and Pearl," he repeated, a bit bemused. "I hope you don't expect me to remember that." Even though he probably would, now. "Unless you make them nametags or something."

"I found a pen," Rose held it up, "But you didn't have any post-its or anything." She told him. "I got through the whole top row actually."

"The whole... oh dear." He looked at the various buttons and switches. "..are You sure you're even going to remember them all?"

Rose glanced at them herself for a moment. "...Most of them." She said finally. She'd turned to people she'd met about halfways through, in the order she'd met them, so they'd be easy enough.

"Alright." He smiled a little. He had a sneaking suspicion that those names were going to stick. He made a mental note to inform the TARDIS of its new compatriots. "I got your medicine, you know. Needles and everything, just to make it easy. Can't be taken orally, unfortunately."

"Least it won't taste bad then." Rose said, trying to find the bright side. She didn't mind needles much, and, she remembered, were usually more one-or-two time things.

"No taste at all, which is good... antibiotics are mold, so you'd think they'd taste sort of like that.." He made a bit of a face.

"Yeah. Most medicine stuff isn't much on the side of taste." Rose wondered for a minute on how quick it would work.

"Nope. Never has been, never will be - sort of unfortunate, that. You'd think in the process of building a couple of dozen New York Cities, they'd figure out how to make the cherry cough syrup really taste like cherry..."

"Or some chocolate or something. Orange usually isn't bad." Rose added thoughtfully. "Grape's a bit off. Wonder how apple'd taste?"

"Hm. Dunno, I don't think they've ever really made apple-flavored medicine... I always liked the orange, though. Strawberry was too sweet." Now this was an interesting conversation to be having with an alien.

"Should I be wondering why you seem to have been taste-testing our cough syrups?" Rose asked him with a raised eyebrow. "On second thought, not sure I want to know."

"Definitely don't want to know. It's a really long story." He grinned. "Sort of traumatizing."

"Well, we've probably got some time." Rose motioned her head towards the bag he was still holding. "Doubt that's instant, and I probably don't want to start spreading the plague about back home right? Even if it's treatable now." She gave him a pleading look.

He started -

Fade to black


	2. John Smith

They'd been traveling again for a little while now - even after the encounter with the plague and Jackie's subsequent rage - but at the moment had no particular destination in mind. Probably for the better, or so the Doctor thought, since the most interesting things seemed to happen to them when they didn't quite know where they were going.

He was leaning against the seat in the control room, not quite properly sitting in it, looking at the TARDIS's controls, and thinking where they might like to go next. Every day being an adventure, it wouldn't do to go just anywhere.

"Maybe ancient Rome?" He suggested, raising an eyebrow and glancing over at Rose. "Or Venice. Venice is--" He was cut off by a sharp ringing sound, an unfamiliar note from Rose's phone. "..what's that?"

She'd been pacing the TARDIS, listening to the Doctor's numerous suggestions for the past half hour. They all seemed to be on Earth lately, which while not unwelcome, seemed a bit weird. On the other hand they hadn't really gone to any other planets, just that short stop to Raxacoricofallapatorius. Maybe they'd stick out to much?

Rose took a few moments to let the sound sink in, before recognizing it. "Ah!" Without answering him she moved over to where her jacket was hanging on the back of the chair. She searched through the pockets for a few moments before finally locating it, opening it and putting it to her ear.

"Hello?" Rose asked into the reciever, recieving an answer a few seconds later. "Rose!" She racked her brain, trying to put a name to the voice. "Rose? Are you there? It's-" Suddenly her face lit up with recognition. "Jack!" She realized she'd almost forgotten about him, since the Doctor's throwaway line that he was busy.

The Doctor blinked, watching her go and get the phone, still leaning back against the seat. It wasn't her mum, obviously, since that had a slightly-annoying ringtone to it. He wondered if it was a telemarketer - that would be funny, wouldn't it, a telemarketer catching up with them in the TARDIS?

He had been prepared to be amused, but when she announced the name of the caller - Jack - he paled, looking away very quickly. Oh, this was not good.

"Where are you?" Jack's voice over the phone was somewhat relieved, he'd gotten through to her. "In the TARDIS." Rose told him, still beaming. "What happened? I mean.." She trailed off slightly. "I'm not sure, something happened, but I came to, then when I got upstairs the TARDIS was leaving." His voice was questioning now.

Rose thought for a moment, fighting to remember something. "But... I asked about you, right after the Doctor changed." She fell silent for a minute, looking at the Doctor from the corner of her eye. "He said you were busy. It must've just been some sort of misunderstanding."

The Doctor didn't look at her. The phone's volume a bit higher than some, he could hear Jack's voice distantly. Things always did have a way of coming back to haunt him.

It wasn't a misunderstanding; it was a lie. He just didn't know how to tell that to Rose.

"He did?" Jack's voice was puzzled now. As far as he was concerned, there was a possibility of two things. The Doctor knew he was alive, and still left him, and had made up an excuse. The other was that the Doctor thought he was dead, and had said something to avoid telling Rose.

"Do you think he'd come get me?" Rose answered without hesitation, "Of course. I don't know why he wouldn't, where are you?" Jack looked down at his wristpad. "I used my vortex manipulator to get to Earth, albeit a good deal earlier then I'd planned. It took almost all the energy it had, there's no more for another jump." He hesitated, "Talk to him, then call me back. I'll give him the coordinates." Rose wasn't sure why he couldn't just tell her, but she agreed. "Okay. We'll see you soon." Rose promised, closing the phone. She turned to the Doctor.

The Doctor was staring at the TARDIS controls, hands in his pockets. He was standing up straight now, not leaning on the chair, and probably looked as awkward as he felt - not a common experience for him.

"We can't," he told her, softly. He didn't need to elaborate.

Rose looked at him with confusion. "What do you mean?" She took a few steps closer to him. "He'll give you the coordinates, it's just one trip to get him." She circled the console a bit, trying to get a look at the Time Lord's face, brow furrowed. "He's not busy, he says you just missed him."

"We can't go back for him," he repeated, not looking at her - he couldn't see her face when he said this. He knew it was a betrayal, and he hated doing it. "I can't." He tried to sound firm about it. Only barely succeeded.

"Why not?" Rose tried to move into his field of vision, to meet his eyes. "It's not like we're in the middle of something." She was still confused, the shock of his answer, his certainty, keeping her just from the verge of tears for now. "It's Jack. He's stranded."

He looked away when she tried to meet his gaze, knowing from her voice that she was upset, and understandably. He wished for one moment he could stop being responsible and just go get him, if only so that she wouldn't be so upset.

"He's not right. Not because I don't like him or he doesn't fit in, but he's not right for anytime or anyplace, and we can't go get him because we would be risking that." He spoke very quickly, not wanting to draw it out. Elaborating out of nervousness.

Rose was, if anything, more confused by the explanation. "Not right? What's that supposed to mean?" Her body slumped visibly. "How's he any different now?" She allowed her reasoning to wander, "Risking, what?"

She couldn't grasp what could be wrong, what the Doctor meant. His explanation made no sense to her. Rose's hand was still clutching her phone.

"Risking everything. He... Rose." He sighed, running a hand through his hair and trying not to look quite as upset as he felt. He didn't like doing this. "I can't explain." He could, but he didn't want to. Would, if she made him. But he didn't want to.

Rose shook her head. "Is that it then? You can't explain, so I'm supposed to just accept that?" Her eyes were tearing now. She was leaning on the console, still looking right at him, and pleaded. "Just tell me."

A pause. He didn't know what to do - did he tell her? He would have to, though. She wouldn't accept it if it he didn't. She would probably hate him if he didn't - might hate him if he did.

"...Jack died. Rose, he died, and then he came back. And you can't do that." He kept his voice steady and sure through sheer force of will.

Her eyes were questioning again, and she spoke slowly. "But.. he did." She thought about what Jack had said, 'something happened'. Did he know he'd come back to life? Another thought came to her. "You left him there, you knew." It was a statement, but she continued. "Is it even his fault?" She didn't see how it could have been a conscious decision.

"It's not anybody's fault." He said it so fast he nearly snapped it, then took a breath and forced himself to calm. He didn't want to explain this - she didn't remember. He didn't want her to. "I did know. I left him there because there wasn't any choice."

The speed with which the Doctor had said that it was nobody's fault made something in her head click. Rose's face calmed, tears still wet on her cheeks. Slowly she walked around the console towards him, stopping just a few feet away and standing there. She'd realized something. "You never did tell me. What happened after I came back, you joked, and then-" She motioned to him with a hand. Her voice was quiet.

He glanced at her, only briefly, hands in his pockets again, then looked back to the console. "..you didn't need to know." How could he say 'I didn't want to tell you'? That sounded selfish; it was selfish.

"What if I want to?" Rose asked him softly. Her hand was still on the cellphone, gripping it tightly. Her eyes pleaded for an answer. "Don't I have that right?" She was trying to stay calm now, but her thoughts were a mess.

"You won't like the answer," he replied, voice equally soft, taking a hand from his pocket to reach out and touch the TARDIS's controls. It offered some comfort. "I'll tell you, if you want me to." Saying 'no' was too hard.

"I want to know." Her voice was firmer now. If it would help her understand, she wanted to know. What had happened, why he hadn't seen fit to tell her. Why there was now something 'wrong' with Jack, how he'd apparently come back to life.

He paused a moment, considering how to say it, what to say exactly to make this alright, or at least not horrific. "You looked into the Time Vortex," he began, staring at the controls, his hand still on them. "You used its power, or it used you, I'm not sure which; you destroyed the Daleks, all of them. You brought Jack back to life. And it was burning you up inside, that's why you don't remember."

As he told her, she thought she could faintly remember. As if she'd seen the scene from far away. She nodded slowly. "Then... I made him wrong." Rose whispered it, hanging her head. She started slowly to the door that lead deeper into the Tardis, her fingers moving over the buttons of her phone, stopping in the doorway, one number left to dial. Without turning, she asked the Doctor one more thing. "If it was me, would you have abandoned me?"

"It wasn't.." But she was already walking away, and he let the words fall, looking up to watch her go. When she spoke again, he looked away, though she wasn't looking at him.

If it were her. She had to ask that question, and he couldn't help the automatic answer, that quick, "No. Not you." And knew she would want to know why.

Rose did want to know, but at the moment she couldn't bring herself to ask. She had other answers to mull over, wasn't sure if that was one she wanted added onto the pile right now, and she had a promise to break. She dialed the last number, listened as it rang once before someone picked up on the other end. "I'm sorry." Was all she said before she hung up, and her voice cracked. Letting the phone drop to the floor of the TARDIS as she walked through the door. A moment later it rang.

It took him a moment, two rings and the time it took to cross the control room, to go to the phone, pick it up. He stared at it like it was something he'd never seen before for another ring, and opened it maybe a second before it would have gone to voicemail.

But he didn't say anything. Just stared at the door.

"Hello? Rose?" Jack's voice was worried. The tone before she'd hung up. He had an idea of what may have happened, but wanted to know for sure. "Rose?" He asked again, and wondered what the Doctor had said.

A pause. "It's not Rose." He probably should have thought to elaborate on who it was, but it didn't cross his mind that moment that his voice was different from before. Sometimes things like that were easy to forget.

Jack didn't recognize the voice, and would have thought it a wrong number if he hadn't just gotten through a moment before. Rose'd said she was in the TARDIS, and the only other person who would've been in there would be..."Doctor?" He asked hesitantly.

"..yeah. That's me." He forced his voice to be a little more cheerful, a little less... morose. Which was, really, how he felt, but he pushed past it. Added, "Sorry. Know I sound a bit different... still me, don't worry."

"She did mention you'd changed." Jack told him, "So I've got no reason to believe you're not." He decided that casual would probably be the way to go. In his experiences with the Doctor, if you pushed he pushed back. Gathering together guesses, he spoke again. "I'm guessing, you knew." He didn't elaborate.

"I did. I'm sorry." He really did mean that, walking back to the TARDIS controls as he spoke. "There wasn't any choice." There was, though, and he had made it, like he had made it with countless others. His companions, left behind.

"What happened?" He asked, his voice was uncertain when he continued. "I died, Doctor. Why did I wake back up?" Jack hesitated for a moment. "Why do I keep waking back up?"

"She brought you back." He smiled slightly, somewhere between bitter and fond. "You can't die, now. The Time Vortex gave you back life, and so did she. That's why I couldn't take you."

Jack let out a long breath. "You didn't tell her, did you? Until just now." For a moment he was quiet, then he almost laughed, "Busy." He nodded. There was and, his voice quiet Jack continued. "You should have told me, if it was like that, if you didn't want her to know."

"I didn't have time. I had to... the Time Vortex was killing her. I couldn't stay to explain." He shook his head, holding the phone loosely in one hand with the other hanging by his side, standing in front of the TARDIS controls. "I had to save her."

"I understand." Jack told him, "I-" He started to say something else, but stopped himself. Shaking his head, he continued. "I won't apologize for calling. I could still really use a lift if you can stand the sight of me." As an afterthought he continued on. "If not, I guess I'll get there eventually."

He thought for a moment. Looked down at the controls and listened - to Jack's voice and the quiet hum of the TARDIS, the staciky sound that cell phones always made. "Where are you?"

"France, I think I just missed the plague by a year or two. Still not the best of vacation spots." Jack read off the coordinates from his wrist. "I think, I just saw something leave as I got here. Anything to do with you, Doc?" He joked.

"Oh, probably. Say hullo to any white-coated doctors in funny helmets you see." He paused, and added, "Don't leave."

And then he shut the phone, tucking it into his pocket and getting to work. Switches, levers - he remembered the names Rose had given them and smiled wanly. Alright, then. He was breaking the rules.

He'd break the rules for her. For him, too, maybe. He didn't mind that.

Rose hovered just outside the doorway. She'd run from the arguement, and part of her felt she'd been childish. It wasn't his fault, and she had the impression that she might not have been entirely fair.

Opening the door she stuck her head into the console room. "Doctor?" Rose wasn't entirely sure what she expected him to be doing, but starting the TARDIS sure wasn't it.

He didn't look up, occupying hands and mind with the TARDIS so that he wouldn't think too much about what he was doing. It was stupid, it broke every rule... and here he was, doing it anyway.

"..don't want Jack getting plague, do we?" He asked, his humor a little strained.

The remark confused her for a second, before she realized. Still a bit unsure she moved closer to him, and gave a half-smile as she spoke. "Popular this time of year, is it?" Rose wanted to ask why the sudden change, but at the same time she didn't want to jinx it.

"Probably because of that controller... causing problems in time is a good way to get anything keyed to the Time Vortex to come running." He didn't smile, but he had cheered a little - he didn't feel as bone-weary as he had. "It's possible Jack's ship keyed in on the TARDIS's signal... seems he got there about when we left.."

"Finished off to quickly then I guess." She was standing next to him now at the console, a bit back just in case he had to reach something. "Thank you." Rose said quietly. She still couldn't help but feel like a kid who'd just thrown a tantrum.

He nodded. "Not like anyone's going to get me into trouble for this, I s'pose." Except for himself. His fellow Time Lords would have been furious if they were there. But they weren't. "Oh, there we are... should be there any second." There was that characteristic noise, the slight shaking that meant they were on their way.

"Still." Rose thought for a moment, back to the last time she'd managed to plead him into something. "It's not going to be like, with those bat things and such, is it?" Probably a daft idea, but she couldn't help but ask. It was the same thing, wasn't it, really?

The Doctor thought about that a moment. "No... shouldn't be. Jack doesn't belong in that time, either. We're not taking anything we shouldn't. At least, I hope not." He didn't sound as sure as she was probably hoping.

When they stopped, he went to the door, glancing back at Rose. "You want to wait here? Dunno if we want to risk all that plague business again..." He kept his voice light, but he wasn't smiling, and hadn't been since before their argument.

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Rose nodded, "And you shouldn't be long, cause if he hears the Tardis he'll probably head for it." She was trying to being logical about it.

Meanwhile, a few blocks away a previously lounging figure had sat up. Grinning, once he realized he hadn't imagined it, he stood and made his way through the door of the house he'd been in.

The Doctor nodded. "I'll be back soon." Pushing the door open, he found himself on an all-too-familiar street. Well, that certainly made things clearer, didn't it? There had to be something going on here.

The sound gone and Tards still out of sight, Jack checked his wrist. There was, what he was sure was the Tardis, a few blocks away, but... He extended the scan. Something else just outside of range, he'd have to ask. In the meantime he headed off to the direction of the Tardis.

The Doctor walked out of the alley in which the TARDIS had landed, looking around and waiting for... something familiar. He wondered if the controller was still there. If he needed to pay a visit.

Jack reached the street just in time to see the Doctor walk out of the alley. He didn't recognize him of course, but the clothes were definitely not this time period. Not that he was one to talk. He slowed from his jog to a walk, not calling out yet just in case.

He didn't notice Jack immediately, but when he did, he looked over, raising a hand in a small wave. Knowing - realizing, more like - that Jack wouldn't recognize him, he chose to call out instead. "Took you long enough!" But he wasn't angry about it - he was joking.

Jack grinned, stopping once he was a yard or two away. "Don't tell me you missed me." He'd taken the fact that he had joked as a good thing. He put a hand on a hip, looking over the Doctor critically before speaking again. "You didn't go about it half-way did you? I approve."

"Didn't really get a choice in the matter, but I'm glad you like it." Bit of sarcasm, there, and he smiled. "I guess if you're going to flatter me, it means I have to let you back on the TARDIS..."

"And here I'd started to think you'd just dropped in to say hi." Jack joked, before remembering the odd blip. He turned a bit more serious. "Not to darken the mood, hopefully, but I noticed something odd." He moved closer, bringing the radar up on the wristpad and holding out his arm for the Doctor to see.

The Doctor looked at the radar screen briefly, and nodded. "..so they are still here. Had a bit of a run-in with something here the last time we came. Might have to pay them a visit." He paused, and added, "They said they'd clear out once the plague was over.."

"Something did leave, and I'm not sure that was here when I got here." Jack said as he put his arm down. "I haven't seen anything wearing a helmet while I've been here." He told him. "Nothing strange, really."

"Hmm. Well, that's odd. I was sure it'd be the meranon.." He thought about that for a moment, crossing his arms over his chest while he did. "I suppose we should go see what it is.." A glance at Jack to see if he was up for it.

"Probably a good idea. Shouldn't take that long to get there." Jack said simply. He'd expected something of the sort to happen when he'd brought it to the Doctor's attention. "I'm up for it if you are."

"Well, if I leave it alone, I'll just regret it later," he replied with a brief grin. Things were getting towards back to normal, in a way. Jack was there, and Rose hopefully didn't hate him, and they were adventuring.

"Then, should we go? They shouldn't have had time to do anything, if they are." He took a few steps in the direction, before turning, and with a grin added, "You never know, maybe they're just here to ask for directions."

The Doctor, still grinning, nodded, walking in the same direction. "We can always hope it'll be that easy," he replied. "Maybe they just really like the scenery. Not bad, here.."

"I don't know, I think I'm more a fan of Pompeii. Not really the best time period for tourism, is it?"Jack asked him. "You said you were just here recently, what was that about?" He couldn't help asking.

"You and your volcano-dodging." He shrugged, smile fading slightly at the mention of his last trip to this place. "TARDIS brought us here, me and Rose. Plague and funny doctors being controlled by beings called the meranon. We basically told the meranon to leave once the plague was done with, and they did. Not sure if that's got a connection to this..."

Jack frowned. "I've heard that somewhere, Meranon. Can't remember where." Shrugging he kept walking. "Maybe, maybe not. Did they say why they were here, or let me guess, you said funny doctors, so, 'they were here to help' right?"

"Exactly." He nodded, walking with the other. "They wanted to help humanity get through the plague... and then keep helping them. Help them right out of their free will, I think."

"Ahh." He nodded knowingly. "Any idea if they were the top rung?" Jack asked, after a moment's thought. "I'm assuming they agreed easily enough with you, if you let them stay."

"Dunno. They agreed when I told them to leave once the plague was over.. pretty easily, actually." That was, come to think of it, a puzzle. Most aliens didn't give up their conquests so easily.

"We'll find out soon enough. We're about a block away now. Hopefully they're not going around the universe bragging about their partial success." He had the vague image of some sort of guidebook.

He chuckled. "Well, you know, that's practically a win... sort of... they should be proud of themselves!" A pause. "I'm being rude again, aren't I?"

"Rude? Don't think so. But if you start getting the same arguements they used on your from others.. You know what happened." He gave a half shrug as he grinned.

"Suppose so - it would be a little funny, though." He nodded, looking around briefly before asking, "I think we should be about there now, right?"

"Yeah... It should be just about here." Jack looked at his wristpad, nodding. "Somewhere in here. Knock on doors I suppose?" There didn't seem anything out of the ordinary from where he stood.

"We're going to stand out," he commented, though he didn't seem daunted by it at all. "Looks like we don't have a choice, though. How about... this one?" He pointed to one of the townhouses and walked up to the door without further adieu, rapped on it three times and took a step back.

Jack waited a few feet behind, about a minute after he'd knocked the door opened. A kid looked at the two of them suspiciously, and for a minute looked as if she was going to close the door.

The Doctor refrained from sighing, though he sort of wanted to. "Hullo!" He said cheerfully, smiling and trying not to seem as... well, off-setting as he usually tended to be. "Are your parents here?"

She mulled over the question for awhile, looking indecisive as to what to say. "No." She finally replied after a few minutes, moving quickly to shut the door.

"Hang on," he reached out, putting a hand lightly against the door to keep it from being shut. "Where are they?" He asked. Not unkindly, but he was less than adept at dealing with small children.

"Not here." The girl backed up from the door. "Go away." She said, her tone warning. Searching her brain for a minute, she continued. "They'll be back soon."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, then nodded. "Right, then. I'll just wait for them out here."

She nodded, though her eyes were still narrowed. A few seconds later she shut the door.

"Well that went well." Jack said after the door shut. "Are we assuming we've found it, or that' we've found a paranoid little girl and moving on?"

"Little bit of both.. let's try the next house down." He shrugged and walked to the next door, apparently unruffled by the girl's demeanor, and knocked on that door. Wait and see.

Jack followed after him, but this time no one came to the door. He moved over to the window, peeking into it. "Can't see anything." He finally decided, looking away.

"Nobody home, eh?" He knocked again, but when no one came to the door, he took out the sonic screwdriver. "Can't hurt to have a look around, can it?"

"I guess not." He moved closer to the Doctor. "It seemed sort of...vague through the window. If you know what I mean. Could've just been dirty but, I doubt it."

He nodded. "Nothing's ever just coincidence, is it?" But that, he thought, was what made it so interesting. He used the sonic screwdriver on the door, hearing the lock pop, and pushed it open, not pocketing the screwdriver yet.

When the door opened, the view into the room was much the same as it had been from the window. Jack squinted over the Doctor's shoulder. "Is it me or does the room seem a bit...staticky? Some sort of hologram?"

"You're right... I think we've stumbled upon the right place." He smiled thinly, stepping inside, though he kept an eye on their surroundings. "Is anyone here?" He called.

There was no answer. Jack leaned on the door, keeping it open. "You should just come out now." He called into the room. "We just want to talk." For now, he added mentally.

"Not here to hurt anyone... or anything." He stayed away from the walls a bit, but took a few steps forward. "If there's anything here.. come on out."

As he went further into the room, something became visible on the floor. It seemed like a type of plant. After a little bit of hesitation Jack moved away from the door, it stayed open.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow at that, kneeling to get a better look at the plant. It wasn't a vine, or what one might think would be in a place like this. "...what's this? Bit of gardening?"

It was a weed of some origin or another, not growing from the floor, but just sitting there. Jack eyed it skeptically. "Someone doesn't have much taste, in any case." Jack noted. Though he supposed it would've been a bit eerie if it had been a rose.

"None at all. It's like they've just.. picked it and thrown it here. It's not growing..." He was considering this, frowning and standing up again.

"We should keep looking." Jack hesitated for a minute before making a suggestion. "There are two floors, if we split up, it's that much quicker we get to the bottom of this. The downside being, we don't know what 'this' is." He crossed his arms. "Your call."

"That works. Be careful, though." Jack he trusted to take care of himself, thankfully. This would've been more difficult if he couldn't... "Upstairs, or downstairs? Do we have to toss a coin?"

"I'll take the upstairs." He started for the stairs, moving up a few, before turning and looking down. "Meet back here in 10 minutes if we don't find anything?" Jack asked.

"Sounds good." He grinned and added, "Not much luck of that, 'course."

"That much quicker for both of us to get to the issue." Jack gave the Doctor a mock salute, continuing the rest of the way up the stairs. "See you in 10 minutes, one way or another!"

"Will do." He smiled, nodding in return to the salute, and walking farther into the house's first floor. There was a door, and he pushed it open carefully.

Behind the door was a dining room that seemed oddly clean. The chairs were pushed in, and tied to the back of one was a balloon.

"..well, this is all very World War II, sudden disappearance of the family. So where are the big bad men who took them?" He was mostly talking to himself, looking around carefully - tapping the balloon and looking for wherever the hologram might end or begin.

There was a slight noise, as in the front of the house the door closed. The ballon had an odd feel, more the consistency of gelatin then a baloon normally is. It was warm.

"Oh, well then. Looks like I found what I was looking for.." He prodded the balloon again, raising an eyebrow - and putting on his glasses to get a better look at it.

The only thing revealed by the balloon on closer inspection was that the string seemed more a very thin prehensile limb, simply wrapped around a bit of the chair as if it were waiting. It also pulsed slightly.

Frowning to himself, he stepped back from the balloon. "Right, what are you? I know you're not a balloon, you know."

The balloon gave no response. The doorway he'd came through closed, and a shadow fell accross the doorway that led to the kitchen. It was soon joined by another.

He spun round when he heard the door shut, eyes fixing on the shadows. "Who's there? Who are you?"

Slowly two figures filled the doorway. They stood straight, and their faces were blank, with maybe a tinge of a malevolent smile. But they looked human. "Hello Doctor." "So glad you could make."

He took a step back - away from the balloon, closer to the door from which he had entered. "I'm not, not so much. Who are you?"

"We are the Family." They moved into the room. "You must forgive us not being ready yet. Daughter is busy." Their smiles grew. "But no doubt you have questions. Don't you Doctor?"

"Plenty of them. I'd like to know what you are, for starters." He frowned - something about this encounter gave him a bad feeling, a chill up the spine.

"All you need to know is that we have only three months to live." "Unless that is, we can inhabit a body with a great amount more energy." "Such a sad fate, wouldn't you say, Time Lord?"

Well, that explained the bad feeling. The Doctor's eyes narrowed slightly. "Sad, but unavoidable. Everything dies." If their tone wasn't so very worrying, he might have been sympathetic.

"Yes, but you see, there is a certain creature in this universe with energy enough to grant all of Us" "Immortality." They stood in front of him, calmly.

"Nothing is immortal. Nothing, and it shouldn't be." He had the sonic screwdriver in his hand, and took a couple of steps back. If he could get to the door...

There was a sound of something heavy falling down the stairs. A few moments later the door opened just wide enough for a small figure to slip through. The figure closed the door after, and held out a hand, which the balloon-creature flew into. "I am sorry I'm late, Mother of mine, Father of mine."

That sound didn't bode well for him, and he looked behind him at the girl. "A family. Alright then, now everybody's here. Have a nice reunion." He turned to the door, pulling it open roughly.

The girl slammed it closed once more, with more strength then the body should have had. "Do stay Doctor. Weren't you eager to meet the Parents of mine?" She tilted her head. The Mother spoke, "You are eager enough to tell us that everything dies, Doctor. You will help us live." She held up small device, "This will track you Time Lord, you will not escape us."

"I beg to differ, actually. I have no intention of 'helping' you to live. Or of staying here." He frowned, the sonic screwdriver clutched in his hand.

"We will have our Immortality, Doctor." "And you are it." From the next room there was a huge gasp of air, and a few moments later the door was forced open, catching the girl unaware. "Doctor!"

He looked back at the open door, stepping back towards it. "Jack! Sorry, was I away longer than ten minutes?" His words were casual, but his tone was tense.

"Nah, I was just getting lonely. Who're your friends?" He kept himself wedged in the doorframe, in case they tried to close it again, and reached out a hand.

"They're the Family. Dunno much more than that, and since they want to kill me, don't really want to." He grabbed Jack's hand and went to stand next to him, by the door. "Are we ready to leave?"

"I'd say you seem to have found the problem, yeah." Jack made to pull him through the door. The girl had been staring increduously at him, and the Family seemed more or less confused by the unexpected factor. "Let's go."

"Sounds good." The Doctor grinned, letting Jack pull him through the door and pulling it shut behind him. "Let's get out of here before they realize what's going on."

Jack nodded, "Yeah, I'd say that's a pretty good idea." He moved, slower through the house itself, until he'd reached the door and opened it. "I knew I had that affect on people, never thought it'd come in handy."

"It's good luck. Knew there was a reason I came back for you." That was a joke, and he nodded as they left the house. "We'd better get out of here before they get their wits back... or Rose decides to come looking for us."

"Yeah, might've been a good idea to let her know, come to think of it." Jack mentioned as they headed back for the Tardis. "Sorry, would've been there a little sooner but I had something of a mishap with the stairs." He thought back a bit, "Which, you probably heard. Any plans?"

"So, psychotic aliens try to kill me, and you fell down the stairs," he teased, sobering quickly to add, "I'm not sure. We get out of here. They mentioned something about tracking me... so we'd best leave before they get the chance."

"Sounds like a plan to me. It also sounds like it was a trap." They were making pretty good time. Jack, to be honest wasn't sure if he'd fallen, or if the girl had intervened. He wasn't sure which sounded worse for him either.

"Probably. They know who I am - that's weird. Apparently they think killing me is like the elixer of life or something." He shook his head. "I'm not edible, you know." He got out the TARDIS key as they approached it, turning it in the lock and pushing the door open.

"Maybe they've got bad taste." Jack suggested. When the TARDIS door opened, Rose had been standing a few feet away, looking as if she'd been debating whether or not to go look for them. "Looks like we had good timing Doctor." He said with a grin.

"Exceptionally. Rose, what did I tell you about not wandering off?" He sighed for dramatic effect, raising an eyebrow.

Rose looked at him innocently, before closing her eyes and chiming, "Do not wander off, not, ever, not even a little bit, especially not if you are jeopardy-friendly." Afterwards she opened her eyes and grinned.

"Exactly! Now, see, you've memorized and you still don't listen!" He gave her an exhasperated look, glancing at Jack and telling him, "I had to make a list. With... with slides, and exposition."

Jack glanced at Rose, who nodded. "Wow. But think of it this way, if it wasn't for her wandering off you'd never have met me." He offered a cheeky grin, putting an arm around Rose's shoulder.

He raised an eyebrow. "D'you want me to actually comment on that?" He grinned, though, walking past them to the controls. "We've got to get out of here, anyway. Don't want those things coming after us..." And he commenced the button-pushing, switch-pulling madness.

"Right. Where are we headed?" Jack moved over to help with what he could. Rose however was shooting them accusational looking. "What things? You two went off and ran around on your own, while I sat here? I thought you were just having a ridiculously hard time finding Jack!" This she directed to the Doctor.

"Back to London," he announced, then said to Rose, "We had a bit of a problem. Alien family trying to eat me - you were better off not there, believe me."

Rose nodded for a few seconds until the words sank in. "Wait, tried to eat you?" She quickly threw up her hands, "On second thought, no, I don't want to know." Jack was hovering at one end of the console. "You said they said something about tracking you, is it really the best idea to lead them to London?"

"Well, I doubt they can track us through time... unless they can." He frowned. "Can you get Pearl, there." He hadn't even noticed that he'd internalized the names Rose had given the buttons.

Jack looked at the buttons for a moment, and then to the Doctor, then back. He was used to pointing and 'that one', or if the Doctor felt Jack was reasonably intelligent that day, maybe what it was for. The names were new. Rose saw his confusion and moved over, flicking the appropriate switch, and grinning at him. "Maybe I should let you get this then." He told her as she stepped back. To the Doctor he said, "But you said they knew who you were, didn't you? Wouldn't they know you could move through time?"

He smiled at the button confusion, nodding to Rose as he continued getting the switches and such. "..you're right. D'you think they followed us here?"

"I don't know, do you have any idea what they're tracking you with? I was a bit busy during the exposition." He thought it over, not missing the irony of the immortality seeking aliens, "I don't think they'd have let you go that easily if they weren't sure they could follow you."

"Some kind've stone.. thing. Not sure what it is." He frowned, looking at the console. "But you're right. They can probably lock on to the TARDIS, maybe. Or just me."

"It's you they want in the first place." Jack pointed out, "If it was some sort of 'stone thing' that's more likely for organics, from my experience." He was trying to think.

The Doctor nodded. "..you're right. It's me they're after, and me they're tracking. That... presents a problem." He was thinking, one hand on the TARDIS controls lightly.

Jack leaned against a column, thinking. There was no way to know how they were tracking him, a number of ways it could be. Rose spoke up. "Isn't there some way you can hide?" She didn't have much faith in the idea though, if they could follow him through time, she doubted a disguise would throw them off.

A pause. "Yeah. Yeah, there is." He looked up, his gaze going to the ceiling momentarily. "A very, very good disguise that I suppose... I'll have to use." He didn't sound thrilled by that.

Jack watched him, noting the tone of his voice. He searched his mind, trying to figure out what the Doctor was suggesting. "What is it?" He finally asked.

"Long story short, it's a human disguise." He paused, then elaborated, "I can hide up most all of my being - everything that makes me a Time Lord, that makes me the Doctor - and become... well, human. Least 'till the danger passes."

"And how long would that be?" As the Doctor explained Jack couldn't help but agree that hiding everything would certainly be the only way but...

Rose was intrigued by the idea, couldn't help wondering about it. The Doctor as a human?

"Three months." He didn't look up from the console this time. "They said they were only going to live another three months; that's why they're trying to get me."

Jack stayed silent. Part of him couldn't help but wonder, that would be three months leaving the universe without a single Time Lord. It was probably an odd thought to have. But three months worth of running through time would be very long. "Is that the only way?"

"I think so. I... don't think they'll stop following us. I don't want to get you two hurt, either, and those things will hurt you, if it means getting to me." He looked over at them, expression drawn.

Jack glanced at Rose, then back to the Doctor. "You know enough to know we're staying with you either way, and I know enough to know I'm not the one who needs worrying about."

Rose gave him a small smile. "If you think you can survive three months as a 'stupid ape', you can stay at the flat. We can take care of you for once."

The Doctor frowned, looking at Rose for a long moment before asking, "Are you sure? I won't remember any of this. I won't know who I am right now. And if something happens.. I won't be able to help you." He was, clearly, a little upset about this. Then again, giving up one's identity for three months wasn't easy.

"Three months, then your back to being you. If anything happens, Jack's here, Mickey's helped before, Sarah Jane's a call away." Rose moved closer to him, "You'll be safer."

He nodded. "..you be careful, alright? Don't let those things find us." He was almost whispering, still looking at her.

"How would I go about that? I don't even know what they look like." She tried to keep her voice light. Jack stood off to the side, letting them have their time.

"Well.. they look like people. Just.. keep an eye out. I doubt they'll be able to find us once I'm human, though." He shook his head, smiling very slightly. "It'll be fine. I'm sure."

Rose nodded, "Always is, in the end." She looked to him reassuringly. After a few minutes, Jack spoke up. "You'll have to let us know exactly what it is you're doing. How to put you right after the three months are over." His hands were in his pockets.

He nodded. "..there's a device." He turned, going to a table and grabbing a small, silver pocket watch that was in the drawer. "This," he held it up. "I'll seal up my Time Lord physiology and memories in this. When it's time for me to become myself again, you open this."

Jack nodded, "Sounds simple enough on our end. You said it seals your memory, do you get any others, or are you going all the way down the amnesiac route?"

"I should get some basic knowledge... there'll be blanks, but I won't notice anything. My brain should be able to connect the dots and come up with things if I'm prompted for specific memories.." He nodded, pressing the button to lower the machinery that would complete the transfer.

"Alright Doctor. We'll see you in three months." Jack promised. "It'll be fine." Rose added. Soon they'd be left with two parts of the one man to protect. Three months and then it would be back to normal. She was sure of it.

"Right. Just.. don't let me leave you, and don't let me hurt anyone, alright?" He smiled faintly, setting the watch in place on the machine. "And if anything goes wrong, just open the watch. I'm useless human."

Rose decided this was better for her to comment on. "We're not letting you go anywhere, and you won't." Jack watched as he set it up. "Lucky for you then, we're not."

"Not at all." He smiled. "Good luck. The TARDIS is set to get us to London. I'll... probably not be conscious after this for a bit."

"Probably for the better. Wouldn't want to start you off confused about the Tardis." Jack told him. "Worst comes to worst, we end up in Cardiff and sit you on a bench till you wake up to get on the train."

He laughed shortly. "That wouldn't surprise me at all, if we ended up in Cardiff. Hate that place. Right, then. Guess I should get on to this before they figure out where we're going.." He took the helmet-like structure and put it on his head, turning. "Rose, could you press that blueish-greenish button there on the TARDIS control?"

"Sure." She moved over to the console, hovering a finger over it for a moment to make sure. Once she was sure, she pressed the button, and turned towards him.

They probably had never heard the Doctor cry out like that - not just cries, but screams as if his entire body were being torn. Technically, it was - losing his second heart, the entirety of his brain and memory and body being rewritten. It held him for several minutes, before he fell, completely unconscious, to the floor.

As the Doctor screamed Jack held Rose back as she tried to run over to him. He was pretty sure interfering wouldn't help, and, as it drug on wondered if it wouldn't have been a good idea to send Rose into another room. But once he was released the two of them were almost instantly at his side. "Unconscious." Was the declaration, and they arranged him more comfortably on the floor then the heap he'd landed in. Soon after, the Tardis stopped and Jack checked a display. Before he had a chance to read it though, there was a knock on the Tardis door.

They shared a paranoid glance, before moving to look at the external camera. Rose gave a relieved sigh, rushing to open the door. "It's my Mum." She explained. "I can see the resemblance." Jack told her once he got a look at the screen. He watched as Rose opened the door.

Jackie had been worried - more than worried, as the Doctor had said over the phone ages ago that he'd have Rose home in time for breakfast and she'd never gotten back. It had been a few days, and when she had finally heard the sound of the TARDIS's engines, she had run down to find it. She breathed half a sigh of relief when Rose opened the door.

"Rose! Where've you been? I thought you were gonna be home a few days ago!" A pause, "That Doctor-" she did have a habit of referring to him like that, "-promised he'd have you home by morning!"

"We got a call from a friend who needed a lift, and he got into a bit of trouble. You will be happy to know though, that you've got me back for three months solid." Rose made easily to leave out the bits about the plague, and being chased, and for the moment that the Doctor was unconscious and human behind her. Instead she hugged her Mum.

Behind her, Jack waited. Once the two had finished he leaned around Rose, offering the older women a hand and a smile. "Captain Jack Harkness. That delay would be my fault, I didn't know I was keeping them." He told her smoothly.

Jackie raised an eyebrow, skeptical, but shook Jack's hand briefly. "I'm Jackie, Rose's mum. You shouldn't've kept 'er, you know!" But she was a bit pleased, and turned to address Rose again, "What d'you mean, three whole months? You're not going ta run off tomorrow without tellin' me, then?"

"Of course not!" Rose smiled, trying to make the next breaking of the news seem casual. "Just that spot of trouble still, the Doctor'll be human for the next three months, couldn't really do anything anyway."

"Human? But you've been tellin' me since before Christmas just how much he's not. Did somethin' happen?" Jackie asked, switching from pleased to worried - if something happened, that meant Rose had probably been in danger, too, which was a negative score in her book.

"It's just a precaution." Jack interjected smoothly, leaning against the doorframe. "Rose was waiting in the Tardis when the Doctor and I went to check something out." Rose decided arguing that she hadn't even know about it until they'd gotten back would be the best idea. "He locked away everything of him that was non-human. It was hide or run for the next three months. This was safer."

Jackie thought about this for a moment, then nodded. "...alright, then. So long as it's safe - had enough of aliens tryin' to kill us in the flat, you know!" She was almost joking, and shook her head. "I guess you lot're staying here, then?" As in, in the flat. Because she couldn't think where else they would stay. Well, barring the TARDIS.

"If that's alright. If not Rose mentioned a friend of his..." Jack trailed off a bit. "Anyway he's unconscious now, and it'd be best to get him out of here so he doesn't start off confused." He turned, walking over to where the Doctor was still laying. Rose followed him a moment later, stopping for a moment to take the pocket watch out of the device, and putting it into a pocket, before moving to help Jack lift the Doctor.

Jackie shook her head. "I won't make you go lookin' for a place to stay. Best bring him up to the flat, then.. can't think it'd be less confusing to wake up on a street corner." A shrug. She was, admittedly, slightly more tolerant of the Doctor since he sent Rose back home before Christmas.

They shot her thankful grins, as Jack lifted him under his arms and Rose managed his legs. Moving through the door Rose pulled the Tardis door closed, making sure it was locked. After that they moved towards the flat, quickly, for as little as people may notice things, the less attention drawn the better.

Jackie followed along, and opened the flat door for them when they got there, holding it open as they were occupied with carrying the unconscious Doctor. "There'd better not be any exploding Christmas trees, this time," she warned, but not terribly sincerely.

A bit confused by the reference, but amused nonetheless Jack grinned. "Shouldn't be." He decided not to mention the balloon. "No exploding anything." Rose promised, "Think of it as a sort of long pit stop."

"Well, I won't say I'm not glad, 'cause I am. Happy to have you home." Jackie smiled, shaking her head and giving Rose another hug. She was glad that she'd have three whole months of her daughter home this time, without any danger. Well, she didn't think there was any danger.

Inside, they layed the unconscious Doctor on the couch. Rose hugged her back. "I should mention," She started. "That he's not going to remember any of it. Of the traveling and the aliens. He'll have new memories, fillers." After a second thought she gave a hesitant smile, "You'll know more about what's going on then him."

"..well, that'll be new." Jackie considered this. "He won't remember any of it? What's he's done, and puttin' you in danger? Who'll he think he is, then?"

"We'll let you know as soon as we do." Jack told him, standing with his arms crossed at one end of the couch. "It was sort of a split second decision, not a lot of forethought." He admitted. Rose kept quiet, it wouldn't be best to start the time back by arguing.

"Well then.." She paused, then sighed. "Cup of tea, anyone? Since nobody's rushing off this time.." She was very glad, but also very wary. It seemed every time Rose came to stay home lately, something awful happened, and she could nearly always connect the dots back to the Doctor. It worried her.

"I'll help." Rose offered something to do while they waited for him to wake up. She could help but realize that the next three months were going to be waiting. Instead she moved towards the kitchen, a hand in her pocket brushing the watch.

It took a bit for the Doctor... well, the man who had been the doctor, just an hour or so before, anyway... to wake up. He did so with a start, as if breaking the surface after diving, eyes opening wide as he took in his surroundings, sitting up on his elbows and looking very, very confused. "Um..." He frowned in thought, not seeming to catch on exactly that there were people about and asking more or less just himself, "Did I hit my head on something?"

Rose was the first one to him, her mind whirring quickly. "You don't remember? Stray vase, when you got here there was a bit of a tiff going. Sorry about that. D'you remember your name?" She asked him hesitantly, try to make it seem she was testing him, that was the basic idea. Jack was there too now.

He blinked a few times, reorienting himself and looking at Rose, still puzzled, but things seemed to be dawning on him. "..John Smith. Unless I just watched too many crime movies.." He smiled a little, thinly, as if waiting for approval that he had, in fact, been right.

"Good." She nodded, and gave him a smile back. "I'm Rose, and he's Jack. My Mum's at the store, getting a few more groceries. You got here a bit early." Jack continued for her, nodding to him. "Do you remember why you're here, John?"

John frowned, sitting up more properly and ignoring the sort of swimmy-headed feeling one tends to get when they've been lying down and try to get up too fast. "..somethin' wrong with my flat, wasn't it? Gas leak, I think. I have to clear out while they figure out how to fix it. You offered to let me stay, I think." He was indicating Rose when he said that.

Rose nodded, "Three months minimum, they'd said. Sorry again, about the pot." They were, almost hovering. Jack realized, took a seat. He thought that being surrounded might not help much. She stayed there, and kept talking. "Is there anything I can get you?"

"No, I'm fine.. thanks. Just gonna let my head clear a bit..." He shook his head. "How long was I out? Feels like a long time." Felt like forever. Weird.

Jack looked at his wrist. "About an hour." Rose sat nearby. "If you've got any questions, we can try to fill you in. It might've hit you a bit harder then we thought." He added onto the reality of the Pot. He wondered if the Doctor'd remember what happened while he was John Smith, make a wry comment about this in three months time.

It was unclear - it had been a very, very, very long time since he'd had to do anything like this. But John Smith had no idea of it, shrugging slightly. Still a bit bemused, though not as bad off now that his mind was working, fixing, making up new memories for him. "I.. think I'm alright. I'm a long way from home, aren't I?" Sort of a loaded question, that, and he realized it, adding in a lighter tone, "We are in London, right? I haven't completely gotten lost..."

"Yeah, London. So a bit away." Rose told him. She tried to lighten the conversation herself some, smiled and spoke. "I guess you just couldn't resist our couch. Couldn't wait to try it out either, apparently." She's still fingering the watch, part of her is sure that at this rate she'll have worn through it before the time is out.

He grinned. "Well, it is a very nice couch. Comfortable. Though I think in the future, I'll try sleeping on it instead of getting passed out on it.."

"I'd imagine that might be a good idea." Rose grinned, then had an afterthought. "Your things should get here sometime tommorow. There should be something you can sleep in here though. Jack remembered the Tardis wardrobe, it made sense to pull out some of the more casual outfits, no need to get John all new things.

John nodded, still smiling a bit. "Thanks. That'd be good.. they did make a lot of fuss over my leaving immediately, but I guess they were afraid the building was going to blow up." He paused, then added, "And I do realize I should be, too." But he didn't sound allthat concerned.

"Things generally turn out for you in the end." Rose told him, as if it were something of an in joke. "Though I can't imagine their insistence of 'Don't call us, we'll call you' was neccessary." For some reason, the small talk seemed almost hard. She couldn't help but notice that Jack wasn't even trying.

If John noticed, he didn't mention it - but then, he was rather oblivious to the situation, not being in the know, as it were, to the truth of it. "They're trying to be enigmatic, I think. Perhaps they're really government spies or something. Think they'll find a national security threat behind the sofa." Even if he didn't know the circumstances, the cheer felt particularly forced. He thought that seemed like it was unusual.

She has the sudden urge to ask him if he's got any aliens in his closet, but she doesn't. Instead she stands, and tells him "I'm going to get a cup of tea." and turns towards the kitchen. Rose couldn't help but feel she was running from the conversation. "Enigmatic's what governments do best."

"Alright." John nodded, looking down at his hands briefly. He didn't feel quite right, not helped by the uneasiness of the environment. He thought this must be normal, though, for new people in a house, when one hardly knew the other inhabitants... right?

Sort of like the way he'd never gotten to know any of his neighbors at his flat. At least, he couldn't remember ever meeting them.

Rose goes into the kitchen, and though there's teapot filled she puts water in a pot and on the stove to boil. To spend more time on the tea for now, and waiting to find out if a watched pot does boil.

In the living room Jack knows that it's his turn to make conversation. He leans forward easily, and smiles. "So, any plans for while you're here?" It comes out more easily then he thought it would.

A shrug from the slightly-befuddled man on the couch, looking up from his hands at the other man before answering. "Dunno. I guess... I should probably find a job." He smiled a little, perhaps to offset the very slight distaste in his voice, there.

Then again, getting a job and living a normal life had never been something the Doctor really wanted.

"Come to think of it that'd probably be a good idea for me too." He shifts, leaning on an arm of the chair he's sat in and crossing his legs. "I'm staying nearby, I've been out of town awhile, quit a job a bit ago, but I've been wandering since."

He had realized that it would take a bit of explanation of why he was sleeping on the floor, if he stayed at the flat. The Tardis was close enough, if anything happened, and he could manage her enough to let him know if anything was. It'd be a good idea to let Rose know he'd come to the decision.

"Mm. I'm pretty sure I got fired." He thought about that for a moment. "..yeah, pretty sure. I sort of forgot to tell them I wouldn't be round, with the whole getting kicked out of the flat thing.." He grinned. "Didn't like that job, anyway."

"Great chance to start fresh then." If Jack looked through him, and didn't listen to the voice but the words, the ubsurdity of it wasn't that strong. "Why not take a few days off to settle in a bit, before you go hunting? They've got to be giving you some sort of compensation for kicking you out for a couple months."

"Maybe.. don't want to kick about and be completely hopeless, though." He shrugged, smiling a little and sort of looking at his hands again. "They're trying to dodge the compensation bit. Figure I won't have to pay rent while they're fixing it, though."

"Well that much is true anyway. Maybe you can find some sort of odd job. What did you do at your last job?" Jack was sure that once everything was set up, this would go easier. Meanwhile the water remained still, and Rose listened to the slow chatter from the other room.

"Library assistant." He made a bit of a face at that. "Not exactly prestigous. I s'pose I could teach. I've got the certificate and all, just never actually got round to using it." Sort of a worrying idea, there - him, teaching.

"Might not be such a bad idea. Maybe you could get a job as a substitute?" Jack offered, wondering how best they could keep an eye on him if he did. Once time passed and nothing happened the paranoia would doubtless fade, but for now...

"Probably.. well, I'll give it a try. Can't hurt. Well, much. Depends what grades they have me up for.." He smiled a bit at that.

"Definitely try for lower grades I think." His mind wandered, "Around 6th is where most of them stop tolerating subs." Jack ran a hand through his hair, and he gave a small laugh. "Guess I didn't really think about that part."

"Well, see, that's the hard part.. 'cause below sixth grade they hardly know anything, and above sixth grade they know everything! So there's obviously nothing I can teach any of them." He grinned, amused.

Jack grinned back and Rose finally gave up on the pot of water, pouring herself a cup from what was already made and leaving the pot to boil. Some sort of pasta would probably work for dinner. She came back in as Jack started to say something back. "So it depends on whether or not you actually want to be able to teach."

"Pretty much," he replied, glancing up at Rose when she came back in, then back to Jack. "Do I want to try to actually teach small demons, or do I want to sit in the back of the room with a newspaper for an hour and some? That's the real issue."

"Well, from what I know, the smaller they are, the easier they are to bribe. Also, they're easier to pull apart if they start to fight." Jack decided after thinking about it for a moment. Rose sat down, letting the tea cup warm her hands.

"That's true... on the other hand, I usually teach higher-level classes, and I don't know... would the elementary school appreciate my teaching physics to their kids while their regular teacher's out?"

"Physics." Somehow, Jack thought he should have guessed. "I guess it would depend how well they learned it. Might be a better idea to try for a bit higher up, in that case. Though I imagine any higher and they'll be thrilled if you manage to teach them anything at all."

He laughed shortly, nodding. "Oh, definitely. But I'm sure there'd have to be at least one smart kid there who'd listen to a sub... then again, they might be so used to having subs who don't try to teach that they just run on auto-pilot."

Rose was hesitant to break back into the conversations, and instead took a sip of her tea. "One who'll want to learn, and a few of the sort who'll just do any work you assign so they have an excuse to do what they want."

"Exactly. And maybe one or two who just don't want to get in trouble... and the rest I can pretend aren't there. Maybe mark them absent."

"Assign a stupid worksheet at the end of the class, and mark attendance by who actually hands it in." Rose broke in, she had a feeling if she didn't now she never would. "I had a teacher who did that once."

It didn't take too long for things to settle down, surprisingly enough. John found work - as a substitute for a couple of weeks, before the school hired him on full-time, a move that surprised even him, all things considered. The initial paranoia and strangeness faded at least somewhat, and time passed unheeded. The daily reminders that John was not the Doctor, however, persisted - little things, mostly, saying something wrong, professing a desire to travel outside a country he hadn't even been born in but was convinced he'd never left, the way he talked about the stars like they were very pretty but like an unreachable goal.

That day, nearly exactly two months into his stay in the Tyler flat, he came to what he'd come to consider some kind of home (though the title never sat right with him, and he wasn't sure if it was just because he slept on the couch or something else entirely), bearing a smallish vase of flowers.

"Weird thing happened at the school today," was his way of saying hello - he never quite said hello or goodbye to anyone, as if saying it meant he'd left and had abandoned someone, or was leaving and didn't expect to be back, so he let things hang midair and came back as if he'd never finished the conversation or gone at all.

"What sort of weird?" Rose asked from where she was sitting, crosslegged on a chair. Her phone sat beside on an arm of the chair, and there was a book open in her lap. She had more or less decided to just stay at home for the duration of the stay, catch up with things she'd missed and all that sort of thing.

It wasn't entirely unheard of for John to come back with a story of the day. At first she didn't even notice the flowers. Jack would be there, normally, in around an hour. For the first month he'd stayed nearby, just in case, but as nothing happened he started straying further.

"I'm not sure - it defies classification." He grinned anyway, shrugging. "Got something in the office towards the end of the day, and I can't make heads or tails of it.. think you might like it better than I do, though. At least, you probably won't kill it.." He didn't let her see the flowers before he could offer them to her in one hand, standing a bit behind and to the left of her seat. Maybe a little awkward, but his heart (one, this time) was in the right place. Give or take an inch.

When the flowers were presented to her, she was surprised. First at the plants themselves, then as her brain processed the story. "They're lovely." Rose started, "Do you know what kind they are?" not able to help asking. In a minute she'd ask if there had been any sort of note, but she imagined he'd have said something if there had been.

"No idea. Could look them up, maybe." A shrug, and he added, "There was a note, but.. dunno if it was even meant for me." After all, he wasn't the sort of person who usually got little bits of poetry. Or flowers, for that matter.

"What did the note say?" Her voice was curious, the months of nothing having dimmed the suspicion she might have had earlier. Rose held the flowers, turning them this way and that. They seemed normal enough, definitely pretty enough.

"Some poem... weird, you know? Not signed or anything. Oh, I've got it right here.." Looking in his pocket for said card, still attached to the thin red ribbon that had been tied round the vase. He fished it out one-handed (the other holding his bag with papers and whatnot, of course) and handed it to her.

She set the flowers onto her lap, and took the card, reading it. There was no name, as he had said. "It's not exactly the sort of poem you'd expect to see with a vase of flowers is it?" Rose couldn't help but ask. "I wonder if you've caught someone the school's eye." She thought about how that might complicate things once the time was up. Putting the vase on a small table, and the book next to it she stood.

"Maybe... doubt it, though. Don't most secret admirers indicate that they're admirers?" He raised an eyebrow, shrugging. "Could be they're just not that bright..." He was joking, honestly.

"Maybe they're being very shy about it." Rose said, and looked the card over again. "You don't recognize the handwriting, for it to be some sort of joke, do you?" She tried, something about it seemed odd, though it had no reason to be.

"Not at all.. not messy enough to be a student's, and, well, I don't know about the other teachers.." He didn't pay much attention to them. He thought he ought to, but had never gotten the chance. "I don't think whoever wrote it's first language is English, though. Look at the lines." He set his bag down to lean a bit on the back of Rose's chair, pointing to one of the lines on the card. "A little awkward, too boxy."

Rose looked, then looked a little harder and saw what he meant. "Not quite drawn, but still not really written." She bit the inside of her cheek as she thought, glancing momentarily up at the clock. For some reason her mind wandered to a scrap of paper she hadn't seen up close, but she shook it from her mind.

"Yeah.. definitely not someone used to writing with Western letters. I'm thinking maybe Russian or Mandarin, maybe Japanese or something like that." He was thinking about it, and briefly it almost was like the Doctor, but the Doctor would have thought of languages a lot more exotic than Russian.

"Russian..." She said thoughtfully, before looking up at John with a slight smile. "You do know Jack's going to be teasing you about this, don't you?" Rose would let him do that much, before she hinted at anything. Might as well wait and see if there was anything else astray.

He paused, thinking about that, and made a face. "I figured that out. I s'pose we can't just pretend I really did buy you flowers?"

"I don't think so, but really he'd probably just tease you about that instead. Or ask why he didn't get any." She added the last remark with a joking grin. He'd have to know anyway, and there was a large part of Rose that didn't want to have to lie about more things then she could help.

"True. Should I give him the flowers if I get anymore?" He grinned, adding a bit thoughtfully, "Probably not, though. Can't imagine him taking care of them. 'Sides, your reactions are more fun." It was his very roundabout way of flirting, one might suppose. He wasn't good at it.

"I don't think the place he's staying gets much sun." Rose told him honestly. For some reason the bit of the flirting she did catch reminded her of a puppy failing to climb a stair. She smiled, both at the mental image and at the action. "Oh?"

"Yes," he replied earnestly, still grinning. "I'm also hoping that you know how to take care of flowers. Because I... don't. I would definitely kill them. They're much better off in your hands."

"Sunlight and water's as far as my knowledge goes, but I'll do my best." She promised him, slipping the note into her pocket. Part of her realized that they were doomed to a month of life at the most. As she had said the TARDIS was lacking in sunlight, and Jackie was far from having a green thumb.

"That sounds about right.. I've never kept plants. Well, or really lived with other people, 'till now, so I'm no good at either." He took a few steps away, sitting on the couch that had more or less become his 'bed' over the last couple of months.

"You've been fine." She told him easily, still standing. Rose had one hand in a pocket, the other hanging down as she spoke. "I just regret that we don't have another bedroom to give you your privacy."

John shrugged. "I don't mind. I'm just grateful you let me sleep on the couch, honestly." He smiled. "Otherwise I dunno where I would've ended up."

In her mind, she couldn't help but say 'Sarah Jane's', and it was at times like this she held the watch in her pocket. "You'd have found somewhere." Rose assured him, sitting back down in the chair.

"Mm. Well, I'm glad I didn't have to." He shrugged, picking up his bag from where he'd set it down and getting out some of the various things he needed to look at - students' homework assignments, the spiral notebook that had served as his journal since he'd gotten there. Red pen, black pen, charcoal pencil. The usual.

"Me too." Her voice was quiet. She didn't know that she'd ever really looked at what he brought back from work before. Rose leaned back, and just watched him. Idly she realized ir would probably seem odd, so she opened the book and held it so she was watching just over the top of the pages.

He didn't seem to notice, setting the homework papers aside in favor of the journal for the moment. Not a... proper journal, that. He didn't write about his day in it. He wrote about other days - what he saw when he was sleeping, those strange fantastic things that he didn't know to tell anyone about, because they would think he was insane. The charcoal pencil made illustrating such things much easier, when words failed him.

She kept watching him, curious as he put the obvious papers aside. She wondered if the spiral book was for attendance, or something along those lines. It didn't look that official to her though. Rose was lowering the book slowly, but didn't seem to notice.

John didn't look up - he wasn't writing at the moment, drawing something he'd kept in the eye of his mind since morning, through the monotony of work and classes, going through the motions while he tried to remember as much of his strange, wonderful dreams as he could.

It was so odd. He could have sworn Rose was in his dream, too, and Jack. Then again, it was his subconscious.

As she watched, she noticed that his motions didn't seem right for writing. The longer she watch, the more sure she was that he was drawing. Her curiosity got the best of her, and she set down the book. As quietly as she could she walked around the back of the couch, as if on her way to somewhere, but stopped behind him. Rose peered over his shoulder.

At first, he didn't notice her, concentrating on the sketch. It was in the lower corner of a page already half-filled with his characteristically scratchy-but-legible script, opposite a full page of writing and drawings, one of which happened to resemble a telephone box. The one he was working on was something else, a curve of glass and fire, a girl sitting on a stair watching it. A scene that no one would ever recognize except those who had been there: Rose and the Doctor.

After a moment, he glanced up, seeming to notice her presence and look vaguely embarrassed without saying anything.

Rose didn't say anything either, but after he'd looked up she, hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder. Her heart skipped a beat as she looked at the drawings. She wanted to ask about it, but couldn't find the words. Hadn't he said that he wouldn't remember any of it? This seemed to prove otherwise. John Smith had not been there when the world ended.

He looked at her for a moment, then looked back down at the sketch. "..it's something I saw in a dream," he muttered, a little bit embarrassed, but the fact that she hadn't laughed at his silly sketch of her helped a bit.

"A dream?" She asked, it might make a little more sense, that way. Rose couldn't stop herself from asking the next thing that came to her mind. "Of the end of the world?" Her second question was quieter, and she thought about walking around the couch.

He frowned slightly at the paper, still holding the charcoal pencil loosely. "Yeah.. how did you know?" Confused, a bit.

She looked at the picture again, closer. It was vague, and she realized that her mind had put lines in there that were not. Slowly she walked around the couch, sitting hesitantly on the edge. Rose looked at it again. "I guess it just seemed..." She trailed off. There wasn't really a way to explain it.

John looked over at her, then back to the picture. "...it's strange. Because you were there, and just.. bits and pieces. I try to put it together and it falls apart." He smiled a little, shook his head. "It's silly, though. Just dreams."

"I don't think it's silly. Do you... have dreams like it alot?" Rose wanted to know, for more reasons then one. She turned to look at him, smiling softly.

He nodded. "Most nights. It's.. like a story. And I'm the main character. Guess my subconscious is making up for something." How utterly boring his life tended to be, for one thing. Go figure.

"Would you tell me about it? I mean, if you don't mind." She moved back a little on the couch, and maybe a little closer. Rose wanted to see how much he remembered, what he thought about it. Even if he didn't know it was memory.

"I.. can try. If you promise not to set the men in white coats on me." John smiled thinly, though it faded quickly. After a moment, he spoke again. "They're.. strange. I'm in them, this man called the Doctor. I guess that's supposed to be me. And you're there, sometimes, Jack, and other people and... things. I'm not sure how to explain, it's.. like a movie."

"Promise." She told him, meaning it of course. His mention of men in white coats had reminded her of the doctors, and in turn whatever the Family was. "Then start at the beginning. Don't worry if you think there's a part I won't understand, just keep going." Rose smiled reassuringly.

He nodded, looking down at his notebook and thoughtfully turning it back to the first page. More sketches, writing - a bit sloppier than the later writing, though. "It's not... it doesn't go much in order," he warned, before beginning to try to explain. The dreams were often surreal, and he described them that way, in halting unsteady words as if he didn't know what human phrases could possibly describe such things; living shop dummies and Slitheen, metal creatures that frightened him waking and feared him dreaming. Fragments, like the pieces of a picture that had been torn apart - some had been lost, swept under the sofa or thrown in the garbage, but some remained, making a strange small picture that one could only just make out.

Rose nodded along, with him as he told her, a small smile of familiarity staying on her face as she listened. In a way, the fragments helped her to understand some. They were, in some ways, she thought, what he was. The little bit that was left when the rest had been torn out and put into the watch. As she sat, she couldn't help but wonder something. Barely audible, in a voice she wasn't sure she even wanted him to hear, Rose asked him. "Wha' if... I told you it was all real?"

He looked at her, slight frown on his lips. Wondering if she was joking with him. "..I don't know," he said softly, shaking his head. "It can't be, can it? I mean, it's impossible." Some tiny, tiny part of him rebelled against that idea; he ignored it.

"Impossible..." She said the word as if doing so would allow her to taste it's meaning. Her gaze fell, for a moment, to a spot on her hand where a cut had been. Rose smiled softly, but couldn't bring herself to turn to him as she did. Part of her wanted to fill all the holes, to take him to see the box around the corner. To see his probable amazment at it.

"..it'd be fantastic if it was, though," he remarked, still in that sort of soft voice, smiling a bit. "Don't know how good a leading man I'd make, though."

With that, she could turn up to look at him, still smiling. "Yeah." She didn't know how well John Smith would lead either, 'I'm useless as a human' the Doctor had said. Rose was struck with a sudden reckless feeling. Her voice a bit more solid, she questioned him. "D'you want to go for some chips?"

"Sure." He grinned, then glanced down at the stack of homework papers almost guiltily, and added, "I should be working, but... it can wait." After all, it wasn't like his students would complain very loudly. "It can definitely wait." He made a face at the papers.

"I'd offer to help you with them after, but something tells me that wouldn't go very well." Rose beamed at him. It was an odd moment, and she'd forgotten about the mysterious flowers and poetry. There'd be time to think about them later.

"That depends - how good are you with physics?" He grinned and added, "I think the students might notice the change in handwriting, though... I mean, they're just bright enough.."

"Complete rubbish, last time I checked." Rose admitted to him. "You could always make it extra credit, correct the corrections." She joked, pushing some hair behind an ear. "Handwriting might be problematic though too, come to think of it. I 'heart' my 'I's when I'm bored sometimes. Wouldn't want you getting in trouble."

He chuckled at the thought. "Yeah, I'd either get in trouble or they'd think I was playing some trick on them. And I'd never hear the end of it, either." He closed the spiral notebook, apparently having gotten over any discomfort from it. "Dunno how that bit of extra credit would go.. 'Yes, I had my friend Rose correct your homework, anyone who tells me what she did wrong gets five points on the next exam'? ..no, I wouldn't subject you to the physics work."

"Alright. Let it stand that my services were offered. If you ever hand out something multiple-choice that needs marking, I'm your girl." A thought hit her, "You could tell them the truth, and then it'd be even longer till you heard the end of it. Though I think 'tell me what she did wrong' might be a bit easy. They'd all just write down 'Everything', and be 5 points up."

"But that would be cruel, and then I wouldn't be able to correct those papers in the living room... without laughing, you understand." He paused and added, "I mean, I would try not to, but..."

She smiled at him. "I could always go for a walk while you marked them. Get a pair of headphones?" Rose chewed on her lip thoughtfully. "You might get some questions on what's so funny if Jack came in then, not sure how he is at physics." A stray thought told her he should've been there by now, but it was soon brushed away. "Why don't we cause the problem first, then we can try to solve it?"

"That would probably help. Not much good trying to solve problems that don't exist." He smiled brightly, shrugging. "Though it can be sort of funny. More frustrating when you're the one trying to solve the non-existent problem, though."

"Oh, do you have a specific non-existant problem in mind then?" Rose was starting to get up, swiveling a bit as she did so as to keep eye contact. She had a feeling otherwise she might end up just sitting there all night. Lack of motivation happened at times.

"Well, there's the problem that we were going to go get chips, and we're not going anywhere.." He stood up, though, setting the notebook down where he had been sitting. "But I think we're getting around to that eventually.."

"Baby steps." She advised, "I'd imagine it's only a matter of time till we get somewhere. Question is whether there'll be anyplace open when we do." Once he'd put the notebook down, Rose thought about holding out a hand. Instead she smiled at him once more.

"That really depends on how quickly we actually make it out the door... and if we get distracted again. That's definitely a factor." He smiled in return.

"Oh, yeah. Distracting things, living rooms." She took a few steps before suddenly turning her head quickly, pantomiming extreme interest in some little knick-knack or another on a shelf. Rose held her hands slightly away from her sides.

"Well, there are... um, there's a book there. And a very interesting.. is that supposed to be a houseplant? I think it's died.." He tried very hard to sound serious, and it was virtually impossible.

"Hopefully not foreshadowing for the flowers." Rose mused as she turned to him again. "How about we make a dash escape from these treacherous, er, carpeted shores?" Now she held a hand out to him.

He grinned and took the offered hand. "That is a good plan. We'll have to escape before we're captured - well, before our attention's captured."

"Yeah." Rose's hand tightened around his and she moved, first slower then faster towards the door. She slowed with a practiced ease just soon enough, and long enough to get the door opened. It was almost a mockery and she realized that for two months she hadn't really gone faster then a walk. She was smiling.

He followed, matching his speed to hers so he didn't get ahead of her and didn't get far enough behind that he would have to let go of her hand, pulling the door shut behind them with his off hand once they'd passed through it, smiling himself still. It felt like living, this, in a way that his dreams felt like living and his time at the school didn't, not so much. Like something that was missing wasn't, at least not so much.

She ran for a block, feeling the wind in her hair and not the weight in her pocket. Rose almost turned, out of instinct, almost headed for the TARDIS, but she caught herself in time. It would've been to much, she was sure, to run right to it, by it even. Instead she went another block, panting at the corner as she paused to get her breath. "I guess I should get out more." Rose managed to say after a few seconds.

John followed her - ran after her, stopping at the corner as well after a very near run-in with a stop sign. He caught his breath while loosening the tie he was still wearing from school (his tendency to wear suits hadn't changed, and neither had his habit of not buttoning them properly). "We both should, I guess," he said once he'd gotten his breath back. His human self was a bit less athletic than the Time Lord version.

"At least it's not just me then." She couldn't help but smile. "You are rather less dressed for running then me though." Sneakers, jeans and a top, she realized she was wearing. For all that she hadn't noticed the fact until she'd said something. Rose glanced up at the sky, it was clear.

"Well, I'm not that bad at it, all things considered... and I haven't been strangled by my tie yet, even." He shrugged, and briefly considered just removing the tie altogether, but didn't. Didn't have anywhere to put it.

"That's definitely a good thing." Rose told him, "Killer clothing's never very popular." She looked around for a minute to get her surroundings in order. Alright, their mad dash had been in the general direction anyway.

"Nope, and definitely not appreciated. Not surprising, but.." He watched her for the moment, smiling a little.

"This way." Rose told him, pointing down a street. Afterwards she searched her pockets for money, relieved to find a few crumpled bills. It would've been a bit counterproductive if they just had to turn around once they got there.

"Ah, okay." He nodded, starting in that direction when he knew she was also going that way. He didn't want to outpace her, after all.

She matched his pace as they walked along, they had the momentum now, and distractions weren't as big of a worry. The place she had in mind was a couple blocks away, she'd run out of it just a few months before.

He didn't know the area well, but that wasn't surprising - even as the Doctor, he hadn't wandered much round these parts, and John Smith certainly hadn't. He didn't mind, though, figuring that he would know the place when he saw it, and failing that, Rose would probably tell him.

They soon reached the shop, which had large windows looking into red tables. There was an equity in Rose's mind of bringing John there, she thought. She moved towards the door as they neared it.

"This is the place?" He asked unnecessarily, following her anyway. It was something to say, at any rate.

"Yeah, closest place I know." She doubted anyone would remember her running out, and if they did they probably wouldn't mention it. "Not bad, and cheap."

John looked around the shop, taking note of what kind of place it was, that sort of thing. Not as analytically as the man who'd worn his face a few months ago would have, though. "Guess we should find a seat," he suggested, though the place was far from full, it just felt like something to say. Sometimes it was hard not to just say something for the sake of not standing around staring at things.

"There's an open table with a window, let's snatch that one." Rose suggested, pointing at it. If conversation got low there was the whole of the extremely exciting street to look at. She didn't mention that she'd sat there before, because there wasn't any reason to. She moved towards it, sliding in onto one of the bench seats.

He nodded, following to sit opposite her at the table, glancing out the plate-glass window briefly before looking back to her, smiling a little. "Well, a seat with a view. Not bad."

"Not the best view, I'll admit, but it's something." She smiled back. The sky didn't seem as crushingly gray from inside the shop ttoday. She crossed her arms in front of her on the table.

"Well, it's not raining, anyway. For once." He shrugged, adding, "Of course, now I've said it, it'll start raining as soon as we leave.."

"That's how the world works. It couldn't go about raining while we're inside now, could it?" She realized that they were talking about the weather, and had a sudden thought that that couldn't be a good thing.

"Of course not." He glanced out the window again, thinking. He couldn't help having his mind wander back to his dreams at times, especially when they were the parts that involved Rose. When she was sitting right across from him. Yeah.

Rose fought for something to say. "What do you plan to do once your flat's done? It's a bit far from the school, isn't it?" Questions for the sake of questions. She wondered what the school would think when their new teacher vanished in a month.

John had to think about that, shrugging. "I.. guess I'll have to let the school know I'm not coming back. Maybe I can get a transfer." He, of course, had no way of knowing that he definitely wouldn't be transferring anywhere.

Rose nodded. "They'll probably reccomend you, you got upped from a sub quick enough." A waitress came and left a menu before walking off. She didn't bother looking at it.

"Well, I'm pretty smart." He smiled, obviously joking a bit, though he did know he was smart - he just wasn't quite as arrogant about it as he pretended sometimes (or as the Doctor, for that matter). "Really, though, they might kill me for leaving so soon. I'm expecting some kind of attempt on my life."

She frowned a bit at his comment, but knew he had no reason to think it tasteless. "Didn't you tell them you just needed the job for a few months?" Rose asked, it would've made sense if he had, after all.

"Yeah, but I think they assume they can make me stay... maybe lock me in a closet and only let me out for classes." He shrugged slightly. "They're desperate for science teachers there."

"Probably just scrounge up and try to bribe you to stay somehow." Rose pointed out, "But if it does get to the point you're being held captive I'll get together a rescue team for you." She was joking of course. If she had anything to do about it, it wouldn't get to the point of classes. "So if they start chaining you to the blackboard, let me know."

"I'll do my best. You know, if one day I just don't come home.. that's where I am. Chained to the blackboard, awaiting rescue. Like in a storybook, but my hair's shorter and I'm not a girl." He grinned.

"I'll be a bit lacking in the noble steed area myself, so I won't hold it against you." She suddenly had a mental picture of him in the whole 'princess' attire with a pink dress and long blonde hair. Rose laughed out loud.

"Do you have armor, though? That's the important part, the armor. I suppose we'll have to find a dragon for you to fight - maybe the school nurse." He was trying not to laugh, but he ended up laughing anyway. And he had been trying to sound serious, too.

"We've got some foil I think, it's shiny, metalish." Rose suggested once her laughter had calmed a bit. "Find a big steak knife somewhere. You'll have to rescue me from the nut-house though after." She pointed out.

"Well, of course. And then I'll have to dress up in the tinfoil, and then it'll start all over again. But I won't be trapped in the school."

"Nah, we'll just take turns. Or they'd bring the students to you, while you've got nowhere to run. So if you see them bringing in chains tell'em you're not feeling well and we'll both be saved a lot of trouble."

John laughed and nodded. "I'll have to do that, definitely. I don't think I'd make a very good damsel in distress, anyway."

"I don't think the dress would suit you." She told him sincerely, smiling at him. Rose almost suggested that he was more of a Merlin, before realizing that that'd be a robe too.

"Oh, no. I have absolutely no figure for dresses." He thought about that and added, "Not that I would know, of course."

She looked at him suspiciously, but then grinned once more. "Of course not." Rose gestured to his current outfit with her eyes. "Maybe something more along the lines of a skirt-suit?"

"Maybe.. I don't know if I have the legs for it, really," he tried to look innocent when he said that, but he was grinning anyway.

Rose opens her mouth and is about to say something, when the door almost crashes open. Jack is standing there, panting slightly for breath but on his face is an expression beyond relief. He moves away from the door, but doesn't say anything as he lets his breathing equalize. He felt more then a bit of a fool over his reaction to the empty flat, and now moreso from how he'd opened the door. 'Explanation' he urged himself.

John turned to see what had happened, and looked a bit worried when he saw Jack standing there - wondering if something was wrong. He stood and glanced at Rose before looking back at Jack, puzzled.

In a few strides he's at the table, has smiled at the waitress in apology for his entry and has managed calm his face enough that it does not look like on the morning of his execution he's been told 'Nevermind'. "There was no one at the flat." For a moment his look is pinned on Rose. "I was just going for a jog, saw you two through the window and thought I'd stop in to say hi."

With that explaination, or at least the apparant one, John sat back down at the table, slightly perplexed. "We were wondering where you were earlier," he commented.

"Where I...?" He thinks for a moment, what he was doing, and the image of the TARDIS' depths fill his mind. "Lost track of time I guess." Jack said finally, and Rose is giving him a look that says 'Not now.'

"That happens a lot." He was referring partially to himself, there. He did tend to lose track of things, especially lately. He claimed it was from lack of sleep or boredom.

"Yeah." Rose agrees, "Not that I really have any reason to keep track of it right now." She still looking at Jack like she wants him to leave and he puts a hand on the table near her to tell her to wait. "Anyway, hope I wasn't interrupting anything. I'll be back on my way."

"Not at all. We were talking about... I think it was my job, wasn't it?" Trying to recall the derivitive before they'd gotten on to the idea of him wearing a dress or a skirt-suit, neither of which particularly appealed to him.

"Something like that." Rose's mind has filed the conversation under damsels in distress. "Either way." Jack said with a nod, "I'm off. I'll stop around the flat later with that book you wanted." He tells Rose, and waves at the two as he turns away.

John nodded in reply, but as was the usual for him, he didn't say goodbye (never did, even he wasn't quite sure where he'd picked up that habit).

"That was different." Rose said, to break the silence. If she had thought about it earlier she would have left a note, but the point of the matter is that she hadn't. "Seems like a popular day for running though."

"Must be. Either that or we're all on the same wavelength somehow." He smiled slightly. Of course, in reality he couldn't possible be anywhere near the same wavelength as them - not as John and still less as the Doctor.

She watched as Jack walked away, remembered something from the earlier conversation and joked. "I think the sky's partial, he's left and it's not raining." She tried her best to sound a bit offended.

"It just doesn't like us, I suppose.." He frowned and looked out the window. "A bit rude, you know - it's playing favorites and the only way we can get revenge is by remembering to bring umbrellas."

"In which case the sky just lies in wait. Until the day you forget." She made her tone dark, a child telling a scary story under the table with a flashlight shining in their face. Rose thought an evil laugh may be a bit much though.

"And then, of course... complete downpour. Torrential rains, flooding.. well, this is London." He grinned despite his intended seriousness. "Just because one of us forgets our umbrella."

"Shameful." Rose said, but she was grinning now too. "I'd suppose it might be useful somewhere that's in need of rain, but then it just gets spiteful."

"No, no, because if it were somewhere that needed rain, it would only rain when we're inside. Because nature doesn't like us much," he pointed out, amused by the continued joke.

"Well then you'd just go inside, and it would rain a bit and the problem would be solved." Rose was trying to thread logic into the joke now, and for what it was worth she wasn't sure she was doing that well.

"Yes... but then the locals would realize what was going on, and lock us in a dungeon somewhere so it would keep raining, and trot us out when they needed a bit of a break." Logic, obviously, was not quite John's intention.

"Then we're back to the tinfoil and steak knives aren't we? Suppose we'll need to find someone else to don them but..." Rose trailed off.

"Yeah.. then we both end up damsels in distress. I s'pose we'd have to have Jack come rescue us. Your mum doesn't like me well enough to save me."

"Something tells me, he'd find a horse." Rose was suddenly sure of it actually, as far as the conversation was going. "Probably something a little more threatening then a steak knife too."

"Probably.. maybe a meat cleaver or something. But I dunno about the horse - he couldn't probably get it down to the dungeon. He'd have to leave it outside.."

"That is true. Maybe it can distract the natives in this desert wasteland?" Rose offered. "Though on second thought, how about we just stay here and let our rain-giving powers go unused?"

"That... would probably be best. No need to alarm the public or get thrown into dungeons or anything." He grinned. "I don't like dungeons. Too.. dank. Dungeon-like."

"I don't think I've visited many, but I'm not a fan of them either." Space, various Earths, a morgue, but still no dungeons as of yet. Part of her realized it was probably just a matter of time.

"..me, either. I've read about them, seen pictures, though." Not strictly true, but as far as John Smith was concerned, it was. The Doctor had a bit more experience with dungeons than that. "They don't sound terribly hospitable."

"Hospitality isn't normally something related to dungeons, no." Rose agreed with him. "It's been a rather lot of talking about being locked up today, hasn't it?"

"I guess it's that kind of a day... or we're just a bit morbid or something." He shrugged, then added, "Or maybe I'm right to be paranoid about the school issue."

"There's not really anything that's happened to give you reason to be worried though, is there?" Rose asked carefully. Today seemed to be a good day for paranoia too.

"I can't see why she'd have reason to, unless you've been sending alot of kids to her. If anything that might be more of a chance to escape, she wouldn't have to see you again."

"See, I haven't.. it's completely irrational. At least, I think so. I've barely spoken to her." He shrugged. "Though maybe that's why." Nice to see that he had some self-awareness.

"Maybe she's just very social. In any case you won't have to worry about her for much longer." She realized it might've been a good idea to tell him to try talking to her some then, but didn't want it to become problematic.

"No - that's good, at least. Don't know quite what I'll be doing after that, but I'll figure it out." He shrugged. Transfer schools or go back to work at the nonexistent library he remembered working at.

Rose nodded, and realized that they hadn't ordered anything. No one had kicked them out yet either, so that was good she guessed. The non-existant library would go smashingly with his non-existant flat.

Of course, John had no idea that his flat and old job weren't completely real - but that was the magic of the process, one supposed. Inventing an entire life for this human who wasn't quite the Doctor but shared his face, as real to him as the table they were sitting at. He thought it had all really happened, and his dreams were the fantasy, though the reality was quite the opposite.

After a moment or two of silence, he glanced out the window again, thinking.

"If there were one thing you could do right now, what would it be?" Rose usually wasn't much for introspective questions, mostly because they tended to be asked back. Her response to this one would be a shrug.

He thought about that for a moment, looking at her briefly before answering with an honest, "I don't know." He didn't.

"Two of us then." Rose said, with a smile. "Thought I'd see if I was the only one, guess not." She thought that, if right now she could suddenly be sure for good that whatever he was hiding from wasn't going to find him it would be something though. But she'd still probably wait until the end of the conversation.

"Not at all... I think most people wouldn't know - at least, not when you ask them. Tend to freeze up a bit, I think."

"You have a point there, I guess." She wondered, not about anything in particular, just in general. Rose watched the sky.

"People are strange like that." He shrugged, looking not out the window this time, but at the other patrons.

It was late afternoon and in the Tylers' flat Rose was listening as Jack told a story. Being told by Jack meant that in general the story would: 1. Be fun. 2. Feature some sort of alien in it and 3. Somehow manage to end with him naked. She couldn't help but wonder how he managed it every time, as he'd kept his clothes on well enough when he'd travelled with her and the Doctor. (Though, she thought he might've been wearing something different when she saw him on the gamestation, then what he'd had on just before that.)

John had been at work, and was just getting in again, pushing the door open a little awkwardly - balancing his bag, a book that he hadn't quite been able to fit in said bag, and the odd small vase of flowers he'd gotten. The second of such, and he thought it was exceedingly odd, being nowhere near any major, flower-giving holiday, or even having anyone he thought was likely to give him flowers anyway. Particularly not with flowery (ironically), short poems in strange writing on the card he hadn't yet bothered to remove from around the vase's neck.

He closed the door once he was through by pushing it a bit with his foot, shifting things around in his arms while he stepped in. "..I'm back," he said, though he was reasonably quiet as he heard voices, and didn't want to interrupt.

Once he heard John's voice Jack cut his story off mid sentence. Rose was slightly thankful for this as she wasn't quite sure where it had been heading. "Welcome back." Rose called over to him. Jack turned to look at him, noted the flowers and grinned slyly. "Admirer, John?" He asked, his voice teasing.

John blinked, then glanced down at the flowers as if he'd forgotten about them. "Looks like it. Wasn't you, was it?" A bit of teasing, there, looking up from the bright petals again.

Jack threw up his hands in mock defeat. "You got me. Tell me, what gave it away?" He grinned jokingly. Rose was remembering the first vase, the long chat in the chip shop and never quite remembering to tell Jack about it. She imagined this would be a bit of a reminder now.

John smiled in return, shrugging. "Think it was the bad poetry. You need to learn to rhyme." He was kidding, of course, setting the flowers down on a table before he dropped them.

"You wound me." John assured him, putting a hand over his heart. "Really though, who're they from?" His voice was a little more serious this time as he asked.

He shrugged again, looking at the flowers. "I don't know - no name signed on them. I wish they'd let me know, at least." He was perplexed by that.

"Them?" Jack asked, leaning forward somewhat. "You've got a secret admirer and couldn't even let me know?" He glanced at Rose out of the corner of her eye.

"I didn't really think to.." He set down his bag, still looking a bit confused. "I doubt there's anything to it. I haven't the slightest clue who it would be, anyway."

"A very secret admirer then." He let the subject drop the moment, leaning back onto the chair. He'd have to talk to Rose about it later. The weed laying in the middle of the room in the house that had been a trap flashed into his mind, and he shook his head.

"Yeah, apparently." He took a seat on the couch, his usual perch - well, he slept there, after all. So he tended to end up there. "Maybe it's the school's way of trying to get me to stay. Bribe me, or something."

"Make you think you've got an admirer so you'll stay on to find out who it is?" Rose offered, "You'd think between the schoolboard they'd pick some rhyming poetry though." She curled her legs under her on the chair.

"I know. English teachers and all... maybe that's them trying to throw me off the trail." Conspiracy theories aside, he was curious as to who it would be.

Jack tested something, searching his memory for the scene that had been in the dining room of the house. "I'm seeing middle age, not quite thin, dark hair and a rather uninterested expression." He described the woman who'd been there, and hoped John hadn't seen anyone to match the description.

He thought about that for a minute. "..actually, that does sort of sound like one of the other teachers, but.. I've never really spoken to them."

Jack froze, rattling off some curses in his head. Rose noticed and unfolded herself from the chair, standing up and walking to the kitchen. "Jack, they should be done now. Give me a hand?" The question shook him out of it and he nodded, getting up to follow her. "Sure." Once they were both in the kitchen a fierce whispering broke out.

John frowned, watching them go - very confused by the sudden reaction. He wasn't entirely sure it was all a reaction to him and what he'd said, but... well, he had his suspicions.

After a few more minutes of whispering, they came back into the room, Rose first. "Burnt, figures really." She told John offhand. She wasn't going to name what food she had 'burnt' in case she forgot what she'd made up. She wasn't sure what to do about the situation, there were still three weeks left, and John would certainly ask questions if he was suddenly put under house arrest.

"Did you forget about it?" He asked, referring to the food, of course. Whatever it had been. He didn't smell anything burning, but he chose to ignore that fact for the moment.

"Nah, instructions gave the wrong time. Hate when they do that, you'd figure they would test them about before putting them on the box." Rose told him easily.

"Yeah, they do that.. maybe their ovens are different?" He wasn't particularly interested, but smalltalk was alright. He didn't mind, though part of him very much wanted to press for the truth - he ignored it. It didn't matter, did it?

"That might make sense actually... Next time I'll have to keep an eye on it." Rose hadn't thought of the fact that burnt things smelled burnt, but was glad that John didn't seem to be pressing. They needed just three more weeks...

"Tends to help." He smiled a little thinly, but it was brief. He was thinking - mulling over events in his head. They'd reacted after he'd given the affirmative that Jack's description met one of the other teachers..

Rose nodded, watched him out of the corner of her eye while she thought he was thinking. Jack noted the silence and turned to Rose, finishing up the story he'd been telling her earlier with a heavily watered down version of the same.

John didn't pay much attention to Jack's story, opening his spiral-bound journal and writing in it for a bit. Writing his thoughts out, on a page far removed from the ones reserved for his odd dreams.

When the story was finished Jack checked his wrist, frowning. "I'll see you two later. There's something I want to check out." Vague again, as usual. He left the flat at a normal pace, speeding up just a bit as he neared the door. Once he was gone Rose turned back to John, and after watching him for a short amount of time, spoke. "Another dream?"

"Always," was the reply, with a hint of a smile that only lasted that instant and faded again. He didn't actually look up from the paper.

She noticed his absorption and didn't question him again. While part of her wanted to continue being nosy another didn't. It reminded her of all the lies she'd been telling so often and for a moment Rose pondered on what she had said lately that was actually the truth.

John didn't notice - didn't know. He had no way of knowing about the lies, or even picking up on them. He wondered about some of it, little bits, and every now and again something would happen in his dreams that just made him think, but to him they were just dreams - nothing to be concerned about.

After a few minutes Rose felt she had to break the silence. Part of her wanted to go stand behind him again and try to look over his shoulder, but that hadn't been all that tactful the first time. Instead she got up and searched for the remote. Unearthing it, she turned the television on from where she stood, flipping through a few soaps, a shopping channel, and stopping for a moment on what seemed to be a 'best of' news program. She watched as a spaceship crashed into Big Ben and was aware that she should really change the channel.

That bit actually made John look up from his scribbling and sketching, eyes on the screen as he considered what he was seeing. His head hurt, a little, just behind his eyes, as if this was something he shouldn't have been seeing.

The footage changed, something enormous covering the sky and she flipped the channel quickly. Ir went to the shopping channel and she sat, listening idly as someone talked excitedly about a set of knives.

He watched the screen still for a couple of minutes after she'd changed the channel, but it was without really seeing what was on it. That was... there was something about that, familiar to him and yet entirely unfamiliar, and his head hurt when he tried too hard to think about it.

When 5 minutes later they were still trying to sell her the knives, Rose changed the channel again. She skipped the news program, and eventually found a movie on to watch. It seemed odd and there was a crystal, but it wasn't slicing tomatoes so she accepted it. Rose looked over to John. "Everything alright?" She asked.

He blinked, looking at her when she spoke and seeming a bit surprised - had he forgotten someone else was in the room? "Ah, yeah. I'm fine." A hesitant smile, not much felt. The images on the news program - where had he seen them before? He couldn't remember.

"Okay." She let him go, turning back to the television. A door in the room with the crystal opened onto a stampede, where it had once opened onto a city and she shut the TV off quickly. What did it think it was playing at? Rose couldn't help but wonder.

John's gaze had gone back to his journal, turning pages back to enscribe his observations, the brief flashes of pseudo-memory that had invaded his mind when he saw those images. He told himself that it was merely that he had likely seen it on the news, as they obviously had footage and would have at the time... but that didn't seem right, somehow. That didn't fit.

Rose's phone rang and she answered it after the second ring. Her face fell as she listened to Jack's voice on the other end of the line. He'd gone to ask around, and had found what he expected. Her voice was shaky once she finally told him goodbye.

He looked up at the phone ring, pausing mid-sentence and trying very hard to eavesdrop without wanting to listen in - it was quite the challenge, trying to conveniently overhear something instead of paying close attention, because it was, after all, not right to listen in to other people's phone conversations. But the way she sounded when she hung up the phone worried him a bit, and he couldn't help asking, "Everything alright?"

"No." Rose said honestly. What she didn't say, was that there was an alien on his staff that wanted to eat him. Beyond the fact that he'd think she was mad it sounded so very wrong. What she was trying not to think about were the fact that there were two others, somewhere.

He frowned worriedly, setting aside the journal for the moment - still paused mid-sentence. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

She thought it over for answering. "Not as such." Rose said carefully. She needed a problem, something that could keep him here for the next three weeks. She didn't suppose the universe had planned the school for a gas leak. "Something of a threat, I guess you could say."

"A threat? What d'you mean?" That worried tone again, looking at her. Curious and concerned, and of course he would never know if the threat was real or not. Or if it was real just for one of them.

Rose wished she could just tell the truth, instead she ran her fingers over the watch that was still in her pocket. Any lies big enough she could think of would be on the news, and everything else sounded like a lie. "You'd laugh." She informed him,stood up and walked to a window.

Blink. "I won't. Promise." He figured that anything that made her sound that worried on the phone wouldn't provoke laughter. At least, he didn't think so.

"There's a woman working at your school wanted for attempted murder." It was as close to the truth as she could manage, and she knew that he'd probably say the logical thing to do would be to go to the police. "But she has this sort of, amnesty for another month, so that the officials can't touch her." The closer to the truth something was the more it sounded like a horrid lie to her, she stared at a fleck of dirt on the window.

John thought about this - for a long moment, he tried to understand that and ended up asking, "What d'you mean..? They just can't go after her for a month for some reason?" Wrapping his brain around that idea wasn't too easy - he could conceive of situations where the police might not be able to apprehend a suspect, of course, but it seemed odd.

Rose concentrated on the speck, she'd dug herself a nice hole, as it was. She was starting to think it might've been a better idea to have just told him 'No'. Her mouth opened a few times to start an explanation, but quickly closed. Part of her wished that Jack was here to come up with something, but he was busy doing leg work. "It's an international affair." When the idea finally came to her it seemed simple. "Complicated. All of it a bit covert really, the man she tried to kill was of high intelligence, someone whose existence would be denied by the world at large." John Smith would think her mad no doubt, would want a reason for why she would know this then. Her mind went to Jack and she thought he'd probably get a kick out of playing a 'secret agent'.

John frowned, thinking this over. "If it'd be denied by the public, it makes sense it's not being on the news, but how would you know about it?" He didn't usually question such things, but... it was an improbable situation. And he was curious.

"Jack." Rose explained simply to him. She'd let him come to a decision about what she meant by that, and if she liked it, then she didn't need to thing of one.

Well... that was unexpected. He paused before repeating, "Jack?" With a question mark taped on the end for good measure, there. Wondered what on Earth Jack had to do with international espionage. Seemed a bit bizarre.

"Yeah, Jack." Rose confirmed for him, realizing that she'd have to come up with her own explanation. She glanced around the room a little, as if to make sure there wasn't someone randomly crouched behind the couch, and almost rolled her eyes at herself. "He's sort of a..." She let it hand, making it look like she was just trying to figure out how to word it.

"A... James Bond?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Skeptical without completely discounting the idea. Jack wasn't there often, it was true, but... it was a little hard to reckon 'secret agent' with his usual idea of the man.

"More or less. A bit more on the 'less' though, but you've got the basic idea." How she managed to keep a straight face, she wasn't quite sure. She just hoped that he wouldn't decide to ask what that made her then, for him to be able to tell her about things. Rose definitely was not the secret agent type.

John had an idea about that, but he didn't ask (maybe he didn't want to know?). "...right." He couldn't help being suspicious - after all, that wasn't really the kind of thing that happened to people outside of detective novels, was it?

"I know it sounds a bit daft." She had a sudden cunning plan to explain everything. "But when Jack gets back you can ask him all about it." Admittedly it wasn't that great a plan, on the whole, but it'd save her explaining things anyway. "He's got a watch gadget and everything." Rose added to be safe.

"..alright. Sorry, it just.. it sounds like something out of a television show." He smiled thinly and mostly without feeling. Thinking that, to the same end, his dreams sounded like rather the same thing.

"Could be worse." She gave him a small smile. "I could tell you she's an alien on top of that, Jack's from the future, and you're the person that they'd say doesn't exist." Rose said it casually, smiling where the right points to think the idea ridiculous were.

A pause. "Alright, you win." He smiled a bit more sincerely at that. Had no idea that was the truth.

"Just a matter of perspective." Her grin was somewhat forced. Pushed some hair behind her ear as she walked accross the room, back to her chair. She hesitated before sitting though.

"Sort of, yeah." He was still thinking things through, and his smile had already faded. Unlike the Doctor, John was much less likely to smile when he wasn't really feeling it - which was probably more human, but who knew if it was for the best or the worst.

She walked to the kitchen instead, realizing that talking about the weather wouldn't go well after espionage. Once more she wondered how the Family had gotten here without Jack, and in turn the TARDIS noticing anything. When she came back in with a banana she couldn't help muttering about silly blue boxes.

Overhearing as he sat quietly, thinking to himself about what was going on - and trying to form some kind of educated guess as to why it was going on (and he really didn't like the idea that Rose was lying to him, but it was a possibility), he glanced up. "..blue boxes?" Curious. Well, he hadn't been meant to overhear that, probably...

For a moment she blushed when she realized she'd said it out loud. Afterwards though, her brain moved quickly. She ignored his question, tossing the banana at him. "Get some potassium." Rose told him, though she wasn't quite sure what potassium did exactly, just that bananas had him. The Doctor had liked bananas, maybe her sacrifice of this one could distract John.

He blinked, instinctively grabbing the banana before it hit him in the face and staring at it for a few seconds before raising an eyebrow at Rose. "..er, thanks." He was distracted for a moment, but not entirely deterred, asking a moment later, "What were you saying before? Er, before you threw fruit at me, that is." Maybe she would answer is he made it less serious. Or... something.

"Just mumbling about the bad directions on that box." Rose had thought quickly for a save while she was distracted. The banana's sacrifice had not been in vain, it had bought her time.

"Ah.." He wasn't sure whether or not to believe her - a feeling he seemed to be having much more often of late, and it troubled him. He didn't like the idea of not being able to trust people he cared about.

"Why, any other problematic blue boxes laying around?" Rose asked him, joking. She had a bad feeling that one day he was going to sit her down and ask just what the hell was actually going on. She didn't know if she wanted him to or not.

"Could be. You never know." Like the one in his dreams, for instance. But he tried to banish that thought - they were fantastic dreams, but just that, fantasy. Not real, and he couldn't think of them like they had any bearing on such.

"Alright then." She hugged her knees to her chest on the chair. "Can't have them getting together and starting some sort of revolution." Rose rested her chin on her knees as she thought about what the next three weeks could hold.

"Of course not... I don't know that boxes are usually sentient, anyway." He shrugged, picking up his book again, journal. Looking over it was more or less comforting, depending on his feelings - right now, less, but he did it anyway.

"No usually." Rose agrees, and she hums a tune that will last till the end of the world. She's getting somewhat stir-crazy but she knows there's no way she's going anywhere right now. Even her room seems incredibly far away for some reason.

John also had little intention of leaving - he almost thought he might like to, to get out and away from his thoughts for a while, but he didn't make any move to leave. There didn't seem to be an 'out' for him.

Restless, she crossed her legs, pulling the watch out of her pocket. She studied it, the circular designs that she could almost call a cursive form of crop circles. Rose wondered if the designs meant anything, some sentimental thought or even 'point this end at Time Lord'.

He looked at her briefly, then away, back to the paper and his odd sketches. Bits of dreams that were reality when he was asleep. Maybe more real in some ways than waking was - what a strange notion that was. "..what's that?" He asked, curious. He didn't quite look up when he asked.

"Just a fob watch." She winced a bit as she said 'just', when she thought for a moment what it was. "I'm holding it for a friend." Rose told him with complete honesty, somewhere in her head a little voice added, 'you'. She pondered telling him it was broken, but then he might want to see it.

"Ah. I hadn't seen it before." He accepted that explanation - she was sincere this time, he knew somehow. This, something told him, he didn't have to wonder so much about.

"Normally just keep it in my pocket, no chance of misplacing it somewhere then." Or of anyone taking it, though she was clueless as to who would be the flat to take it. "End of the month I'll be giving it back. I imagine you'll miss meeting him." It was true enough, in a way.

"Ah.. it'll be after I leave, then?" he asked idly, eyes still on the journal he had open on his lap, but he hadn't picked up the pencil again.

"Around the same time, supposedly, but I imagine he'll be a couple days later. Little bit of trouble getting the right time, sometimes." 'Lots of ending up in Cardiff too.' Rose didn't add. She held the bit of chain that was attached to the watch and watched as it spun.

John glanced up at the watch while it spun, wondering why it seemed like he ought to recognize the thing. He must have been going insane, to keep connecting things like this - losing it entirely. "That happens," he said, a bit distractedly.

"Yeah." She puts the watch back into her pocket and stretches her legs, then her arms. "Ask me something." Rose says finally, since she doesn't want to turn the television back on to more coincidental images. "Anything, with a yes or no answer." She realizes that it's not the brightest idea.

He had to think about that for a minute, and he wasn't smiling when he asked, in a voice softer than usual and with a great deal more hidden behind it than he let on, "Have you lied to me?"

He didn't need to specify what about, really.

Rose knew she should have expected this question, and quite possibly did. She closes her eyes so she can't see his reaction once she answers him. For a few moments she just breathes, staring at the darkness of her eyelids. "Yes." She tells him softly, not sure if there's something specific on the other end of the question or not.

John looked at her for a long moment before he could even begin to formulate a second question, or much of anything to say at all. He wasn't sure why her saying that stung - everyone lied, even he did. 'One cannot expect men to be saints,' he had read somewhere once.

"Before? Today?" He asked in that same soft, serious voice, looking away from her when he did.

"Yes." Her eyes were still closed when she repeated the guilty little word. She moved her hand from where she still held the watch as it sat in her pocket. It was comforting, and she imagined that the fact wasn't quite fair, considering what she was doing.

He wanted to ask why. But that would deviate from the set 'rules' this conversation was running in, and she might deny everything. So he didn't. Instead, he asked, "About the international espionage?"

She nodded, and it felt like cheating. She'd set the rules of the game herself, and couldn't tell him that she'd told him the truth too. Or that she'd put as much truth into it as she could, or even just a little excuse of 'but he does have a wrist gadget'. Rose was wondering if Jack would be willing to take her room and let her rough it in the TARDIS.

"..about a lot of other things?" He didn't know, precisely, what constituted 'a lot', but he had a feeling about it. He thought this shouldn't feel as bad as it did.

"Yes." Rose realized, almost everything, everything that wasn't some sort of small talk. Almost everything there was to lie about. Big things and little things and things that were only there to lie about because she'd done something stupid. She wondered why her face was wet.

A pause, and he stood from the couch, setting the journal open on the couch cushion next to where he had been sitting, taking the two or three steps it took to stand near her. "..Rose?" It was a question, noticing the tears and wanting but not daring to brush them away - he wasn't sure he could do anything but stand nearby right now. To touch would be too much, too painful.

She wondered at the question for a moment, somehow felt him standing there nearby. Rose made herself open her eyes and turn towards him, but her head was bowed and she couldn't meet his eyes. "Yeah?" She didn't know what to expect.

"I'm not.." He frowned, thought through the words before trying again. "..will you tell me the truth?" Pause. "Can you?"

She didn't know. Rose supposed that probably there was something, some sort of rule against it. Possibly that the universe would implode or such, though she doubted it. She thought if she was willing to break that rule, she might as well break her own now. "You didn't believe what I did say."

"..what d'you mean?" He asked, looking at her, still standing there rather ineffectively, trying to fit the wrong puzzle pieces together.

She looked up at him now, knowing she had to, to say what she was going to, or there was no way he would believe her. Her voice was not as willing to cooperate, and so Rose almost whispered her admittance. "The alien, and Jack being from the future, and..." She let herself trail off.

"..you mean.." A pause, and again he took the time to find words that sounded remotely fitting. "..that was the truth?" He couldn't help the hint of disbelief in his voice.

" 'm not that good at making things up." Rose told him. Part of her was sure that now he'd think she was not only a liar, but crazy as well. She thought if it came to the worst she could slip the watch to Jack and later on the Doctor'd get her out of the asylum, once he was back.

"..it's like in my dreams, right?" He shouldn't have said that, and the moment he had he regretted it. He absolutely should not have said that. He needed the seperation between the two. Needed it like air, so he wouldn't go mad.

She looked at him, searched his face. He didn't need to know about that part, about everything. Just that there was the alien after him. So Rose said nothing.

He looked away briefly, at the remains of the thing that had once been a houseplant that Jackie had never got rid of, dry dead leaves arranged in a semi-circle as if they were meant to lie that way. It took him a long moment to speak again, to ask, "What did you mean, about the alien?" It was safer to say it like that. Without mentioning the dreams again.

"What I said before." It had been one thing to tell him that an alien had tried to kill him when he wouldn't believe her, another thing entirely in these moments of truth. Rose realized she couldn't even curse them for causing all this, wish they were gone so the watch could be opened and the three of them could be off like it had never happened.

"Why... would an alien be interested in killing me?" He asked, frowning at the dead fern as if it were the one he was talking to, and obviously it wasn't handing up the answers he felt he needed.

"Because it thinks it'll make it and its family immortal." She spoke herself, to a lamp just to the right of his left side. A moment of hesitation, and she added to the explanation. "So I've heard."

"..I don't understand." It was true, and he didn't look away from the plant. Having a staring contest with dead foliage certainly helped. "That doesn't make any sense." Then again, he was just human... right?

"It doesn't, not really." Hadn't they said the same thing before? She thought for a moment more. "You're hiding though." Rose hoped he'd think she just meant here, at a different house, different job. She wished she knew how much more it was safe to tell him, that the Doctor'd left more advice then 'don't let me hurt anyone'.

"Because someone is trying to kill me." He said it flatly, unsure what to think. It was the sort of 'flat' tone the Doctor got when he was angry, but for John it just meant he was confused. Differences. "So, guess my flat's not really being repaired, is it?" Frowning at the dead fern again.

Rose wasn't sure exactly what to say to him in answer to the first question. The second held a bit easier of a reply though. She closed her eyes again as she asked him. "What's you address? Phone number?" It might not have been the nicest way to give him the answer, but her bluntness had been used up for the night, in three little words.

"My address?" He had to think about that, looking at her. It took him several moments before he even realized that he was drawing a blank, and he fell silent, looking out the window again. Things he should know..

Rose stood up slowly. She could hardly tell him that it would be alright, or that in a few weeks he wouldn't have to worry about anything. It was her fault, at least partially, for not being more careful of what she said, for not being able to deal with lieing for three months. She held out a hand, hesitantly, this time it was her turn to be unsure of whether or not to touch him. She wondered if it would do any good to apologize.

He didn't look at her, staring out the window as if he would find answers there, though of course it yielded none. "..I don't understand," he admitted, his voice softer than he meant it to be. He was not the Doctor - he didn't know everything. He hardly knew anything, or so it seemed to him.

She touched his arm lightly, with barely more then her fingertips. "Do you want to?" Rose decided that she'd let him make the call, she couldn't. It was selfish of her, in the end, but she couldn't help it. If he wanted to know...

"I'm not sure." He didn't shift away from that light contact, unsure about everything. Did he want to know? The reasons for why someone wanted him dead, why he didn't remember his own address - did he?

"Nothing will happen to you." It wasn't quite a direct response, but she felt the need to say it. "Either way." Rose promised him, her voice quiet but firm.

John still didn't look back, looking down slightly at the pavement below rather than the sky. "..I trust you." How odd it must have seemed, the contrast between this man and the man he was, had been, would be again.

She couldn't help but wonder why he did. Rose moved her hand a small bit, watching him. She wished there was some sort of instant solution to this, some magical word she could say to make him either remember or forget everything. But if there was, the person who would know it could not be farther away from this man she now felt an odd need to protect.

He wasn't sure, himself. But it was true - he trusted her, even though she had lied to him. Even though he had no reason to. "I think... I want to understand. At least a little, just... why I don't remember those things." Why he 'remembered' so much else in his dreams.

"You don't remember them, because you've never had them to remember." Rose told him quietly. "There was never anything to forget." 'Because you're not really real.' She continued in her mind, but she certainly couldn't tell him he was just a character.

"..what do you mean?" This time he did look at her, just briefly, confused. "Never anything to forget?"

"You don't have a flat, you never did." She told him, a bit reluctantly. John Smith didn't really have anything, she realized. Just a job and a journal full of the Doctor's memories.

"..I don't understand, though. I remember.. leaving, living there." How could it not exist? He knew it, except.. he didn't know where it was. What the address was. Only that it wasn't near here.

"The memories are..." Rose started to tell him 'fake', but then he'd want to know what the real ones were. She had a feeling she couldn't tell him about that. "It's just that they're..." This wasn't going well, she knew. "There is no flat." She repeated, and made herself pull back her hand. If she couldn't even tell him one thing...

"They're not real?" He had put two and two together and, apparently, come out with four, speaking in a soft tired voice that didn't betray much. The sinking feeling he had couldn't be his imagination running away with him.

"I'm sorry." Rose told him, and she meant because he had to know, and because they weren't, and that she'd gone about something in the past few hours, days, weeks, months all the wrong way.

"..well, that explains some things, I guess.." His small smile was faked and forced, but present at least.

Rose wasn't sure whether or not to agree. "D'you, want some time to think, or something?" She was reluctant to leave the spot, but at the same time remembered a time when she'd had to get out of a room and just be alone.

"I... think so. I dunno." He was trying to puzzle through it and coming up with dead ends - lots of them. He didn't... no, he hated it. He could live with not having all of the answers, but he hated not having any of them.

She put her hand on his shoulder for a moment. "I'll be in my room. If you decide that you don't want to, or if you want...anything." Her voice was soft, and Rose had decided that her standing over his shoulder probably wouldn't help things. With a last look she turned and walked away.

He waited for a few long moments before he moved from the window, picking up his journal and going to the door. He knew he shouldn't, and Rose would worry, but... he left the flat anyone, in one brilliant, stupid moment of not caring.

Rose didn't hear the door, could never hear it from her room actually. She laid on her bed, staring at the ceiling. For the most part she scolded herself, for telling him the things, and partially for leaving him alone now. But it wouldn't do to just go right back out.

John left the flat and ended up on the pavement outside,which he had been looking at from out the window before. He needed the fresh air, and if it was a bit cold, he didn't notice. He was so deep in thought he nearly ran into someone. Unusual - usually he, or, well, at least the Doctor anyway, was more alert when in thought (then again, the only time the Doctor tended to knock into things was when he was too busy talking to notice them).

"Watch out!" The girl called out as he barely missed running into her. She clutched the string of her red balloon tightly. She made her face a bit worried, a bit lost, and brushed off her dress nervously. It was a little old fashioned.

xxnecromancy (10:52:27 PM): John blinked, stepping back quickly as he snapped out of the strange thought-daze he'd found himself in. "Sorry," he said quickly. He was usually a bit more careful, but then again, he usually wasn't so preoccupied.

Hakura0 (10:54:45 PM): She looked hesitant, for a moment. "Mister, do you think you can help me find my flat?" She told him an address. "I'm just a bit lost." Her mind was calculating, rather proud of her find actually.

"Oh, um, sure." He did know his way around the immediate area fairly well, and... well, Little Girl Lost there was on her own. He figured it would be best to help out. "It's that way, I think." A brief, faint smile, leading on away from Rose's building.

"Thank you." She told him, following as he lead on. Aware that, even if there was any suspicion it would be towards him. She thought of continuing the ruse, saying she was new to the area, but there was no need to tell more then what was needed. She had him, and smiled.

There was an empty, open lot between some of the buildings that served as a passable shortcut between them. Here, it offered a quick route to the building that she'd indicated.

Ironically, John didn't even notice the blue phone box.

But a few moments later, someone who'd been heading for it noticed them.

Jack had seen John first, then the balloon, and finally the Girl. He jogged towards them. "John!" He kept his voice casual, another 'oh, I didn't expect to see you here.' "Wait up." The girl snapped to alertness, quickening her pace. 'Ignore him.' She urged in her mind, 'And it will be short.'

John, however, stopped when he heard Jack's voice, giving a short wave to the other man and, as he had been told, waiting for him. He was struck once again with that same sort of bad feeling he'd had when talking to Rose, and pushed it aside. Even knowing Jack had possibly been in on it...

The girl stopped as he did, just a bit past him. There was still something of a chance for it to go right... "Mister?" She tried asking.

For the most part, Jack ignored the girl, thankful that John had stopped. "Hey." He said once he'd caught up, stopping up few feet away. "What brings you around to these parts?" He gave the other man a lazy smile. There was no need to seem worried, to ask if Rose knew if he had gone. In theory John was a grown man, and should be able to leave the house alone if he wanted. In reality he knew the answer was likely 'no'.

He shrugged, gesturing to the girl briefly and saying, "I was just walking.. she said she was lost, so I thought I'd help her get home." He had no idea the little girl had other motives, after all.

"Oh?" Jack asked, his voice the lightest bit questioning, his eyes on the girl as he questioned though. "Mind if I come along with you two for the walk then?" He had no 'reason' to tell him not to help the girl home. If anything it might help him and Rose to know where the Family was living. "Rose must be thrilled to have the flat to herself for once, wouldn't want to burst her bubble."

John smiled faintly, nodded. He doubted that, but didn't say as much. "I don't mind. I think it's just over there.." He pointed, indicating a building across the asphalt a bit.

"Alright then, we can make sure she gets inside alright then." He gave the girl a smile. 'I've caught you this time, and you won't get this far again.' Is what he meant though. She glowered at him, when she was sure her prey wouldn't notice.

"Ah, a plan, then." He smiled a bit. This perfectly innocent - to his mind, anyway - interaction helped him push the confrontation with Rose to the back of his mind. He liked that.

Jack started for the house, and begrudgingly so did the girl. "Always good to have a plan." He said with a grin. There'd be time later to be relieved. The girl's face was dark as she had her back to John. The plan had backfired, but there were houses enough, and they were easy to empty.

John followed along, nodding by way of response to Jack's comment. "Usually, yeah." There were times when plans were superfluous, though, weren't there? He looked around as they walked, noticing without really knowing the significance a bit of grafiti bearing the legend "bad wolf."

Jack glanced at the graffitti momentarily, but he hadn't been followed by it long enough to notice and hadn't been alive when its meaning was realized. Within a few minutes they were at the house. The girl waved and entered it, the balloon bobbing oddly after her. Almost as if it ducked below the doorframe by itself.

John didn't notice the oddness - probably because he wasn't attentive enough to it. He wasn't looking for danger. "Hope she finds her flat okay," he commented, unsure if they should follow her inside or not.

"She seemed okay." Jack told him, "If anything her neighbours would probably wonder why we were walking around with her." He pointed out, crossing his arms. "Did you have any specific destination in mind for your walk?" He asked, trying not to hurry him back. There shouldn't be any danger for now, and he had the building to watch in any case now.

"Fair enough." He shrugged at the question, looking at the street through the break between two buildings. "..not really. Just walking." Just escaping, but he didn't say as much.

Jack nodded. "Understandable, I haven't really seen you get out much while you've been here. The best of us can get a little stir crazy at times." In a sort of opposition to his statement, he recalled his far from well-acted reaction from the last time. He was doing at least a little better this time.

"Except to work, yeah... it's nice." Sort of. It would've been nicer if he hadn't gotten out just because he couldn't stand to be in anymore. "I guess it's sort of peaceful. Not even raining, this time."

Jack looked up at the sky for a few moments, before turning back to John. "Not bad out today at all." He agreed, the sky was clear enough, for once. He grinned with a sudden idea. "I'll have to take you out to a bar or something this weekend. Give you a break from work, my treat."

John raised an eyebrow, but more amused than skeptical. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" He had no idea what he was like drunk, after all. Never was one for alcohol. At least, not that he remembered.

"Sure, why not?" He spread his arms for a moment. "I can hold my alcohol well enough, and, if it so happens that you can't..." Jack held up a hand, boy-scout promise style and in a mock serious tone told John, "I promise not to let you try to take advantage of me." For a moment afterwards he looked thoughtful.

That made him laugh a little, and he couldn't help asking, "What if you try to take advantage of me?" Couldn't entirely discount the possibility, after all.

Jack looked at him innocently. "Who, me?" The hand on his chest might have been a little over the top. He looked thoughtful once more, and, again the hand on his chin this time may have been over the top. "Well, I guess we'll just have to hope you can hold your alcohol." He was joking, really, and couldn't resist wagging his eyebrows to help it along.

"I guess so." He shook his head, smiling a little. "I'll have to be careful, just in case." This was, at least, a fairly pleasant and fun conversation.

"Just let me know what day, or days if it goes well." Jack told him. He thought of assuring John that nothing would happen - Rose would kill him if it did, but decided against it.

"Will do." He nodded, putting his hands in his pockets and looking around again. He didn't walk around this area often.

"We're about 4 blocks away." Jack said, noticing him looking around. "If we go, oh," He estimated. "Two or three blocks further we can stop and pick up some food to take back. Spare the flat of Tyler cooking for the night." He grinned, his arms back at his sides.

He thought about that for a moment, then nodded. "Probably for the best... all things considered." He wouldn't outright say that the food tended to be burnt, but...

"Exactly." Jack glanced around a bit himself for a moment, centering his mental map. "The closest place has burgers and chips, but the next block over has chinese, and a pizza place." He'd been spending alot of free time wandering around, at least part of which consisted of lunch time.

"Well..." John thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I'm fine with anything. Dunno." He didn't have many food preferences - whatever was fine with him. Not picky.

Jack thought about it for a minute. "Pizza then. More multi-purpose, and not as bad reheated. Cheaper too." He added as an afterthought. One of the places a little further away too.

A nod. "Fine with me." He'd like the longer walk, anyway. He was unsure about going back to the flat just yet. He wasn't sure he wanted to face Rose again.

He nodded, fixing the route to get there in his mind. "We're good then." He stopped at a corner, waiting for a car to pass, before crossing the street.

"Looks like it, yeah." Coming up with little things to say was more difficult than he thought it should be, but he tried to shove it out of mind. He couldn't think about that right now, about Rose and that look on her face and how sorry she'd seemed. Couldn't.

He followed Jack across the street instead, trying to focus on other things, the color of the cars that pulled up to wait for their passing, what the license plates said.

Jack wasn't having much luck as far as things to say either. He couldn't help but wonder what exactly had happened to make John just leave. He knew better then to pry though, he'd find out sooner or later, and in the meantime keep an extra eye on him, just in case.

"Anything interesting going on at work?" The question was casual, something to say since the subject of the weather had been exhausted early. He turned slightly to look at John as he asked.

Blink. Oh, he was being asked a question. John bid his brain to rewind so he could understand - he hadn't been paying attention. He did sometimes get caught up when thinking about one thing. "Um, not really.. just the usual," he muttered by way of reply, shrugging. "No new creepy flowers or anything, at least." That was a plus.

"Considering you just got them today, I'd be surprised if there were." Jack said, his voice just short of joking. "You must be having a long day." He checked his watch, it was barely six. He decided he might be having a rather long day too.

"It feels like it," he admitted, shrugging. "It's not late enough to be a really long day, is it? ..technically speaking." He smiled thinly, almost joking. He felt like the day had lasted forever already.

"It's about the point where it's done being a very long day actually. Any minute now it could be a very long night instead." His tone was fairly sympathetic, for him it had been a rather long just-over-two-months. "Did they give you any vacation days with that job of yours? Maybe you could take some time off, recouperate."

"Ah. I've always been confused about the conversion system for that sort of thing.." He shrugged. He had to think about the second question, though. "I'm... not sure teachers get vacation days. Pretty much have to be there all the time. Unfortunately."

"I just figure, after dinner, it's night. Seeing as we're on our way to get that now..." He shrugged. "If you go in and pretend to cough on the children they might let you out early." Jack suggested, he wasn't quite sure about teaching in this period himself.

"That could work." He smiled a bit. "Dunno, though. They might keep me there just to torture.. well, me or them, not sure which. Little of both."

"They'll let you spread it around to them, so that they can all have their own time off." Twisted reasoning beside, it made-, well no, it didn't really make sense. "Though I think a little of both is likely." Jack agreed.

"Mm. They don't necessarily want the kids sick, but they do like torturing 'em. Like torturing the teachers, too. I think it's a rather sick arrangement..." He thought for a moment, adding, "Principal must be a sadist, or something."

"Sounds like such a lovely place." Jack said dryly, smiling slightly. "Going from what you said, they must've given you the full time so that they'd be able to torture you more regularly. Principals aren't normally very popular, maybe they just decided to have a reason."

"Could be. They got tired of being called a monster without actually being one... that happens." He shrugged. "It's not as bad as I make it out to be, though. Little torturous, but not too bad."

"Exageration's legal." Jack told him, glancing around for a moment and realizing they were now accross the street from the pizza place. He moved to the curb to wait for a moment to cross. "Fairly common as far as work environments go too."

"Seems like, yeah." He shrugged, watching cars go by. "Not a lot else to do - it's not that exciting a job."

"You could always go for something else." He wondered what else a library aide turned physics teacher was qualified for. Nothing that came to his mind was very exciting. Part of Jack's mind told him it wasn't really important, but if he listened to it there would be a lack of conversation. He crossed the street.

"Could." He shrugged. "Dunno... it's not a bad job, I guess. I could always go in for... I don't know, research or something." He followed Jack across the street. No need to get left behind.

"True." Jack lead the way into the pizza shop, holding open the door once he reached it. "I guess it'd be a question of if you wanted to learn, or teach." What was there left to discover in this time? He admitted to himself he didn't know, he had liked to keep his cons a bit further back in time.

"Guess so - research is exciting, but I don't know what I'd do in it." He stepped inside with a nod of thanks for Jack holding the door open. "Maybe... look at the true nature of black holes. Or something. Astrophysics, fun." He meant that. Some things never changed.

Jack couldn't help but grin as he let the door close behind them, and not at the thought of astrophysics. "There's something then, you could at least give it a try." There wasn't a point in telling him to just keep doing what he was, it wouldn't be much longer. Time was time.

"Yeah. Maybe I should." He smiled a little. It was much more pleasant to talk about things like this. There were life-changing options here, but not... not like before, with Rose. Not that kind of talk.

Moving to the counter, Jack placed an order for two large pizzas, plain. There was enough junk in the fridge at the flat to put on it, and this way there'd be leftovers. Besides that, there was a deal and the food here wasn't half bad. He turned back to John to wait. "Around 15 minutes, apparently. Thursday must not be a very popular night."

"Probably not... good thing it's not Friday, right?" He looked around briefly. Taking in the details, as it were.

"Yeah, we'd probably be lucky to get out of here by Saturday." Jack joked. The restaurant was small, with a few booths off to one side for those who had the need to eat in. On the other wall were a few arcade machines, some off, some with 'out of order' signs on the screen. Throughout the whole place there were pictures taken in or around it, dating back a number of years.one of the oldest featured a man in a leather jacket.

"Probably," he answered absently, smiling a bit. The place was nice, interesting. The one photo in particular interested him, but he didn't pay it much mind - it seemed familiar, but maybe he'd just been here before, ages ago, and didn't remember.

There seemed to be a lot of that going around.

Jack started looking through the pictures himself, once a few minutes had passed. His eyes went distant for a moment when he caught sight of the familiar face, wondered if there had been a thwarted invasion of the pizza shop awhile back. He made sure he didn't stare at it for to long, instead glancing at the place where a photo of a cricket team happened to be.

John mostly kept his eyes down. Away from the pictures, especially the familiar-but-it-shouldn't-be one. There was all too much strangeness going around, and he didn't like it. He didn't much care for being confused like this.

Jack was snapped out of his thoughts when the person at the register called his name. He glanced a bit guiltily over at John once he realized he'd been staring into space for awhile. "You okay?" He couldn't help but ask, holding up a finger to the cashier.

A pause, and John blinked, snapping out of whatever daze he had fallen into. "Oh.. yeah, I'm fine. Sort of blanked, there."

"Same here, at least we didn't miss anything." He jerked his head towards the counter. "Pizza's done, I'll be back in a second." Jack told him as he made his way towards the counter, paying for the food with a card.

"Nope. World didn't end." He smiled a bit, nodding. Waited patiently for Jack to come back.

Soon after he was back, holding the large boxes a bit awkwardly on the way. He hadn't really thought of the fact that he wasn now going to be carrying along two huge pizzas, but his hands would be warm at least. "Ready?" He asked John.

A nod. "Yeah.. you want help with those?" Gesturing to, obviously, the pizzas. After all, losing said pizzas would be a bit sad.

"Nah, I got them, they just don't know it yet." Jack informed him. There, one end on his hip, a hand on the far end and a hand underneath. Pizzas secured he made his way towards the door.

John nodded. "If you say so." He went for the door as well, even holding it open for his pizza-carrying friend.

Jack nodded his thanks as he manuevered the pizza through the doorway. "As long as we don't run into anyone in a big hurry, we're alright." He gestured to the doorway. "That was the hard part.

"Ah. Well, we conquered that obstacle. So we should be alright." He didn't think of the fact that they were heading back to the apartment.

He glanced at the sky for a moment, it was darkening, but didn't seem particularly eager to rain on them. "As long as the sky holds out." Jack noted, hopefully not effectively jinxing them.

John looked up at the sky when Jack said that, frowning at the clouds. "..yeah, wet cardboard would make it harder to get the pizza back... but I think it'll hold for us."

"If not we'll just have to duck in somewhere with a roof and do something about the pizza before it's ruined. Namely, eat it." He was joking of course, sort of. It depended on how sturdy the cardboard was.

"Yeah.. it'll be a tragedy, of course." He grinned, shaking off any trepidation he had about the trip back. He couldn't dwell on it.

"A willing sacrifice for the whole of..." Jack pondered. "Would it be for the good of pizza, or mankind?" It was something entertaining to think about, in any case.

A pause. "..mankind, I think. We're the ones eating it, after all. Guess the pizza's pretty noble, though. I mean, sacrificing itself and all." He thought about that, and added, "Then again, I like to think most of my food isn't alive when I eat it."

A few memories passed quickly through Jack's mind, and he nodded. "Definitely prefer my food dead." He made the comment possibly a little to seriously. "A sacrifice for both man, and pizza kind."

"That's it, then. I'd pity it more, but I am hungry, and, well..." He shrugged. He glanced at Jack when he made his maybe-serious comment, but decided not to press the issue.

"At least it will fulfill its purpose then, rather then serve as a decoration for the floor, or possibly a trashcan." He tilted his head for a moment as he thought. "I've seen a pizza stuck to the ceiling once. Don't know if it ever got eatten, I was just passing through."

"That's... weird. Wonder how it got up there." He decided that he was thinking entirely too hard about that, and stopped trying.

"If I remember right..." It was entirely possible that he didn't. "Something with an unstable table. It was more or less launched while I passed by." Someone had attempted to lunge over a table, after him, sending the pizza up.

"..that's a little impressive. It takes effort to get a table to throw something that hard."

"It was rather impressive." He'd stopped to watch it, actually rather amazed. It was worth the few seconds he'd lost though, ultimately. "Someone might have fallen on it actually, so there was some effort involved."

"Ah. Well, that makes a little more sense. I wonder how long it took the pizza to fall off the ceiling.." And, more amusingly, whether it had hit anyone, but he didn't say that.

"That, I am afraid, I shall never know." His voice was solemn as he concluded. Looking around he realized they were about a block away from the flat, and he decided not to try to switch arms with the pizza. It wasn't much point now.

"Just as well, I s'pose. No need to help clean up." His smile faded, though, when he noticed how close they were. He looked away, at the street and the cars going by, the darkening sky.

"Exactly." Jack saw his smile fade out of the corner of an eye. "Just as well we're getting back I guess, almost dark. Wouldn't want to have someone mug us for the pizza after bringing it all this way." He'd made a decision.

"Fair enough.. I wouldn't want to witness the mugging." He kept his voice light, anyway. Or, well, tried to. "I'm not much good in a fight, so..."

"We're here now, so now worries." Jack managed to work a hand free from the pizza as he moved to the door, woeking a key free from a pocket and fitting it into the lock quietly.

"Fair enough." Once the door had been unlocked, he once again held it open so Jack could get through without having to worry about it. And maybe to delay his own entrance by a few seconds.

Putting the pizzas first, Jack slid through, pocketing the keys and holding a finger to his mouth to single to be quiet, before tiptoeing toward Rose's room, where he assumed she'd be.

John nodded, shutting the door behind him as quietly as possible, watching Jack without making to move further into the flat.

Once he'd reached the door he knocked twice, hard, and called out "Pizza!" Inside the room Rose jumped about a foot off her bed. Glancing at a clock she realized she must have dozed off at some point. She wondered how John was doing. Opening her door she was greeted with a grin from Jack. "Come on, while it's something sort of resembling hot." He told her, walking away and towards the living room before she had a chance to say anything. She followed him.

John took a few steps in, but he was still uneasy and he didn't do a great job of hiding it. He wasn't sure yet whether he wanted to be here or to turn around and leave.

Setting the boxes down on an available surface, he turned first to Rose. "The pizza's here, how about some paper plates or something?" He asked her. "Okay." She made her way into the kitchen. He looked over at John, but didn't say anything. He wasn't going to say anything about the other man having been out if neither of them did.

And John didn't, going to the living room eventually and taking a seat towards one side of the room, on the couch. At least he could pretend all was well, right?

He crouched down to open the box, nodding slightly as he did so. The smell of the pizza filled the room, and surprisingly a small amount of steam left the box. "They're both plain." He said to no one, about the same time Rose came back into the room with plates. Jack snagged a few pieces and a comfortable bit of the floor, near the boxes. Rose put two pieces each on two plates, walking one over to John as a peace treaty, not quite meeting his eyes. "Here, since you're already sitting down."

He blinked, not expecting that, but took the plate with a sort of hesitant half-smile that hardly convinced him. "..thanks," he said finally.

"Your welcome." Rose told him but moved over her usual seat. When Jack was gone she would try talking to him. Jack was about to make a comment on her actions, but took a bit of his pizza instead. Thinking it through, he spoke a few seconds later instead. "So, that night out, are you thinking more tommorow or Saturday?" He asked John, enjoying the perplexed look Rose gave him.

John paused, looking at Jack for a moment before what he was saying clicked and he remembered their earlier discussion. "..er, tomorrow's fine. It's Friday, anyway." He nodded. He glanced at Rose, but didn't seem too concerned with explaining things to her.

"Around 8 then? Give you some time to take a break after work, and it's not too late." He grinned, especially as Rose seemed to now be gaping. No doubt she'd call at some point to chew him out, but it wasn't like he was doing anything wrong.

He smiled a little, nodding. "That's fine.. gives me time to pretend not to be slacking on my grading, too." He wasn't sure how much he intended to actually work until Saturday or Sunday, but it was worth a try.

"Probably for the better." Jack's voice was a bit foreboding as he put his now empty plate on top of the box. "Anyway," He started to stand up, and lifted the top box, with the halfeaten pizza inside it. "Just wanted to stop by for the minute. Something else I want to check out before I go to bed." He waved as he left. It probably would've been a good idea to stay a little longer, but there was still what he'd be on his way to do when he ran into John that needed doing. Hopefully things would go smoothly.

John nodded, giving a small wave to Jack as he left, thinking to himself. He didn't eat much of his pizza - too busy thinking to concentrate on that, too, maybe.

Rose took a chance, getting up and walking over to him. She was blushing slightly. "I'm.. What I mean is, I didn't mean to leave you out here yourself that long." She hesitated, then decided to confess. "I think I fell asleep. Did you get a chance to think things through?" She bit her lip after she spoke.

John looked up at her, frowning slightly, but... he wasn't as upset as before. He thought that might have been a good thing. "..yeah, a bit." He had, really, between bouts of not wanting to think about it at all.

She sat down, a bit hesitantly, on the couch next to him, trying to take up as little room as possible on it. "So, you'll be getting out of the flat for a bit tommorow I take it?" Rose gave him a small smile. "If I won't be leaving you alone I might see what Shareen's doing."

"Yeah, a bit.. guess we'll see how that goes." He smiled a little ruefully. That would really be interesting, wouldn't it?

"Yeah." She put on an off-put look to tease him, "Jack's never taken me to a bar." She tried to sound jealous, was, just a little, in a way. But she winked afterwards to show she was joking.

His smile grew a little at that. "I'll let you know how it is. I'm still afraid he's going to take advantage of me."

"This is Jack we're talking about." Rose pointed out, "If he gives you any trouble I'll straighten him out." She couldn't help but realize that while she'd been doing nothing but confusing John, Jack had proceeded to invite him drinking. Rose wondered where she went wrong.

"Literally and figuratively, I suppose?" That was sort of a bad joke. But it was better than delving into the world of introspection again.

She overthought his statement, and proceeded to blush rather brightly. That would teacher her to spend so much of the time alone using Mickey's internet. "Er, something?" She hazarded as a reply. On second thought Jack himself probably lent enough to it.

"Something like that, right?" He was a little amused, grinning and adding, "I dunno, if he takes advantage of me while I'm drunk, would I remember enough to tell you anyway?"

"I don't know." She admitted, "But I can't imagine him not mentioning it later, blackmail or something, if nothing else." Rose thought over that idea. "Though I can see him teasing you anyway, even if nothing happened."

"...yeah, probably. Guess I'll have to hope I'm not the type to lose track of himself after a few drinks," he commented.

"I'm sure it'll be fine." 'Just make sure he doesn't take you back to his place' She added in her head, then winced. It hadn't been what she meant, but she was stuck with that mental picture for now.

"Hopefully. I'm not too worried, though." He was more amused than worried, really. He was sort of looking forward to it, in a way. Something to break up the monotony and chase away his thoughts. And dreams, for that matter.

"Good." She told him with a smile. Part of Rose wanted to figure out how to bring up the earlier topic, to see if there was anything she could help with, but she couldn't figure out how. "I think it'd be beside the point of the outing if you were."

"Yeah, probably." He smiled slightly, shrugged. "Though to tell the truth.. I'm not totally sure if the outing has a purpose, so..."

"Well, the way I see it, there could be a few purposes for the outting..." Rose started. "One, to get you to relax. Two, to get you drunk, and three..."

"..do I want to know what three is?" He asked, raising an eyebrow and adopting a more serious expression (utterly faked, of course).

She attempted a serious expression, but burst into laughing before looking at John suggestively. "Do you?"

"Dunno yet. Could be fun..." He grinned, trying very hard not to laugh and sort of half-failing. "Could be utter disaster. Maybe I'm better off being surprised."

"Maybe you'll get lucky, it'll be an utter disaster, and you won't remember a thing." She thought over that sentence for a moment after she said it, but decided it was well enough.

"..or it'll be less than total disaster, and I still won't remember it. Either way, Jack will probably hang it over my head forever."

"There, there." Rose patted him on the shoulder. "I've got stories on him for you, if it comes to that." She assured him.

"Ah, good. Then I won't be completely defenseless." He smiled a bit.

"Though he's the one who told me them, so they might not be much help." She admitted.

"..no, because that means he's not really embarrassed, doesn't it?"

She looked at him searchingly, her face straight. "We are talking about Jack here."

He thought about that for a moment. "..point. I nearly forgot for a moment that he has no shame."

"Exactly." Rose smiled at him, then remembered something, and her face grew serious. "You probably don't want to think about it but...Earlier?"

His smile faded, and he glanced away briefly. "..yeah?"

She winced a bit as he turned away. "It is dangerous out there. Promise me if you need to get out you'll let someone know?" Rose hated to bring the subject up, but couldn't help being worried. She wasn't aware that he'd already been out, but had realized that sometime in the future he might want to.

"..I will." It was a half-lie. He had already gone out by himself, after all, without telling a soul. He would have felt more guilty were the situation different.

"Thank you." Her relief was obvious in her voice. She trusted him to keep his word.

A pause. He wondered if he should tell her that he'd gone out before, but he didn't want to worry her. Didn't want to admit it, anyway. "I'll try not to get myself killed." He was almost joking, but he had no idea how serious that idea was.

Rose felt something of a role reversal about the conversation. She wasn't quite sure how to reply to that, so she followed her instincts and hugged him briefly. She hoped it wouldn't open a new can of worms.

He blinked, surprised by the gesture, but he didn't move away, putting one arm loosely around her; gently, almost. Something told him not to fight it.

Once she'd pulled away she fought the urge to apologize. She wasn't sure where it had come from anyway. Instead Rose changed the subject. "So, have you decided what to wear tommorow night?" She didn't quite meet his eyes.

The subject change caught him a bit off-guard, but he did his best to recover. "Um... I haven't even thought about it." Is that something people did, plan outfits ahead of time for that sort of thing?

"Typical." She told him, but it was obvious she was joking. "I'd imagine clothes would be a start." Rose continued to tease him.

Blink. "Er, well, yes. I don't want to go naked, obviously." He realized belatedly that she was teasing him.

"Probably just make the matters you were concerned about worse." She reasoned.

"Oh, definitely.. and it'd make it a bit more likely I get taken advantage of, too." He nodded.

"Yeah. Though the aluminum foil and steak knife rescue will still hold."

"Ah, yes. My knight in shining tinfoil." He smiled a bit. "Rescuing me from... from lockup, as opposed to the mental hospital, this time."

"It was the school to start with. Then you had to get me out of the asylum." Rose corrected him.

"That's right. Sorry, I forgot, that's the right of it. I had to be the knight in shining armor for the asylum. Because I'm dashing like that... sort of."

"Oh yes." Rose managed to keep a straight face. "But for now, did you manage to get any of your work done while you thought? Or will you be taking me up on my offer to horribly fail at correcting physics?"

"..er, I sort of blew it off," he admitted, adding, "But I'll have to do it tomorrow, pre-outing. If you want to help, I suppose you can.. give the students an opportunity for extra credit."

"I imagine the papers handed back would be more amusing after the outing, but I guess that's not what you're going for. If you're not finished sunday I'll give you a hand."

He grinned at that. "Probably, but we can't have the students knowing their teacher drinks, can we? ...or that he's mad, whichever conclusion they come to."

"Well you said the school didn't seem to want to let you go. Maybe it would help some?" Rose suggested innocently. "In any case, I think I'm going to turn in soon. Apparently that nap took a lot out of me."

"Could be.. they'll think I'm an alcoholic, drinking and grading papers... though really, that's what they'd drive you to.." He paused, then nodded. "Alright. I should probably try that, too. Sleep, that is."

"Alright. 'Night." She told him, getting up and moving towards where her room was located. Rose would probably be having a chat with Jack before she got to sleep.

"'Night," he said, nodding to her. He was sitting on his 'bed', as it were, so he didn't have to go anywhere.

About half an hour later the light in her room clicked out, and she began the staring contest with her clock that would ultimately end in sleep.

John finally located his pillow and the blanket he'd commandeered since he started staying there and went to sleep some time after that, curled up on the couch a bit catlike.

It was friday, a few minutes before 8pm, when someone knocked on the door of the Tylers' flat. Jack was dressed much the same as any other day, though the smile he wore may have been a bit more amused then usual.

John was grading papers, trying to get some semblance of work done before play - after all, he doubted that his students would appreciate waiting another week for their already-belated exam grades. And he'd feel bad if he just left without trying to get anything done.

He stood when he heard the knock on the door, setting down his paperwork on the coffee table before going to answer it, pulling the door open with a sort of bemused smile. "Bit early," he announced, but good-naturedly - it was only by a couple of minutes.

"Really? It is 'around 8'." Jack crossed his arms. "I guess you could say that I couldn't wait. I'm actually surprised you didn't mention the fact that I have a key." He admitted.

"..there's that, too." He paused and admitted, "I forgot." About him having a key, that is. Not about going out that night.

"Just as well. I forget what retort I had planned to respond with." He leaned against the doorframe slightly. "I take it you'll want the last," Jack glanced at his watch. "Four minutes to get ready?"

He shrugged, glanced back at the half-corrected papers on the table. "..don't think I need it. I'm not that set on finishing telling a kid how badly they're doing..."

Jack jerked his head toward the world outside the flat and flashed John a smile. "In that case, shall we go? For the wellbeing of the self-esteem of your poor students, of course."

"Oh, yes. You're just rescuing them, are you?" He asked, smiling, but in the end he nodded. "I'm ready to go, then, if you are."

"Then unless you've got a place in mind, follow me." He unfolded his arms, pivoted and started in the direction of his planned destination, slowly.

"You're the one who knows where we're going," he replied, shrugging and following him out, shutting the door behind them. "Lead on."

Jack did, the place he had in mind was very close by, and also happened to be fairly cheap, which was a plus. It was always annoying to run out of money before moonlight.

John followed along, glancing around the darkening street as they walked. Getting there didn't take long, and he tried not to think beyond the moment. For once.

Once they got there the door was open, and the inside badly lit, but not horribly crowded. Yet. There were a pair of stools open by the counter and Jack headed for them after a glance to make sure John was still there.

John was, and while he followed at a bit of a slow pace, looking round the place, but he did come along after a moment or two.

"Surprise me." Jack told the bartender once he got close enough to hear. He knew it was usually a good way to get the most expensive drink in the house, but every once in awhile they'd get inventive. "What do you want?" He asked John.

John shrugged at that. "...dunno. Whatever's fine, I think." Well, as long as it wasn't a one-way ticket to being drunk off his feet, that is.

Jack rattled off an odd name, and the bartender nodded, coming back a minute later with a fairly normal looking drink which he set in front of John, and one that was bubbling strangely which got handed to Jack. He looked at the liquid in the cup with interest before raising it to take a drink. "Here goes."

"Good luck," John told him with an amused smile, taking a cautious sip of his own drink. It burned a little, but it wasn't unpleasant.

He took a drink, looked up thoughtfully for a moment and then shrugged. "I've had more interesting. Not bad though." But it was nothing on a hypervodka. Jack supposed Earth this century wasn't very notorious for its potent alcohol.

"Interesting's a good word for it, though," John agreed, but about his own drink. He wasn't a big drinker, and he wasn't much used to the taste.

Jack nodded. "I've got a bit bigger of a scope of reference." He decided. Maybe when all this was over with they could do this on a larger scale, he doubted it though. Plus, there were a lack of good bars in the universe, he imagined an end-of-the-world type event would knock the offending bar out of service. He took another drink.

"Probably. I don't really drink." But he did take another, less tentative sip of his drink.

"It's had the occaisonal uses." He wondered for a moment when he'd last heard from those executioners, and if they were still together. "Though you've probably got the better idea."

"Who knows? ..difficult to say, really." He shrugged. His life, relative to anyone else's, well... he really couldn't say. Not when he didn't even know how much of it was real and how much was made-up.

Jack shrugged once more, taking another swig of the mystery drink. He almost said 'Life's short.' but the ridiculous irony of it stopped him. "I guess." He said instead, casting an eye over the room.

John took another drink of his, which he had no idea what was, but which he didn't mind particularly - it was pretty good. "Usually is, anyway."

"Sometimes moreso then others." Jack said. The place was filling up slightly now, and people were trickling in slowly. He kept an eye on the door.

He shrugged, took another drink. Interesting place, a bit. A lot of local people, at least that he could see.

He thought back over the last few minutes, and thought something seemed a bit off. Jack gave an approving glance at his drink before taking a gulp. Once what seemed a good number of people had entered, the bartender turned on a tv in the corner. "Figures it'd be the news." Not that he was much for televised sports.

John blinked, looked up at the television briefly. "Always seems to be... I haven't turned on the television once in a week without ending up on the news." Granted, the only time it had really been on was when Rose had turned it on, and... that hadn't gone well.

"Must've been something big happening lately. Or a lot of nothing." He shrugged, either way the news itself was hardly exciting. "To be honest, I don't know when the last time I turned on a television was."

"I dunno.. Rose had it on the other day, 's why I thought of it." He shrugged, took another sip of his drink. "Looked like a lot of nothing, though. I don't watch the news much." Or, well, he didn't remember watching it much.

Jack took a drink, pondering on that a bit. Rose didn't seem much of a person for the news, but he figured there might've been nothing on. "Well, at least a lot of nothing usually means that nothing's happening at least."

"That's true." He shrugged. "I wasn't paying attention, so I couldn't say." His brain hadn't managed to falsify memories of the crash landing in London, or of the Sycorax incident at Christmas - they were alien, and so wholesale erased.

Jack grinned. "Well that's one way to do it." He realized, partially, that it would be like stretching after a three month nap to be able to stop the small-talk soon. "I doubt it was anything worthwhile. Probably a product recall, or something on a movie."

"Mm. Probably. Something about.." But he shut his mouth quickly before he could mention the brief flashes he'd seen before Rose turned off the television.

Jack finished off his drink as he waited for John to finish. When it seemed obvious that he wouldn't, he spoke up. "Some horror flick?" He offered.

"Something like that, I think, yeah. I didn't see the rest." He was grateful for the easy out, taking another drink from his glass so he could finish it. And maybe stop thinking about all that.

"Lots of rubbish remakes around this time." Jack agreed. "I can see why you wouldn't bother paying much attention." He looked at the empty glass for a moment before pushing it aside.

"Yeah.. well, that, and Rose turned off the television round that time." He smiled thinly.

Jack wondered what exactly had been on the news at that point. "Ah, censorship." He joked.

"Yeah. The iron hand of the one who has the remote control."

"With not chance of an overthrow without exile." Jack shook his head. "Such cruel dictatorship you face."

"I know. It is. But I can't really argue with her, or she might leave me stranded someplace, without hope of rescue. Like the school."

"Normally I'd think it would be the students who'd fear entrapment in school. You just take a whole new level to it don't you?" Jack motioned for the bartended.

"Well, I'm the teacher. Naturally I'm even more neurotic than my students." He paused and added, "Also, I think they plot to handcuff me to the chalkboard. Is that normal?"

Jack thought about the issue carefully. "For you, or for the rest of the world?" He asked finally, as he got a new drink. "To actually answer the question though, not from my experience."

"I didn't think so." He smiled a little, though. "Still, I'd best stay clear of the maintanence man at the school, just in case."

"If you tell me talks to the teacher with the black hair you mentioned before I'll have to ground you." Jack warned him.

"Will you take away my television priviledges, too?" He queried jokingly. He knew, though, that Jack and Rose were taking this seriously, and he added, "I haven't seen him, though, talking to her."

"Rose seems to have that covered, so that's out of my domain." Jack thought about it for a few moments, taking a drink. "Good."

John ordered another drink in the ensuing brief silence, taking it with thanks. Didn't make sense to go out drinking and not drink. Anyway, it wasn't as bad as he'd thought it would be.

Jack accepted the lapse of talk. John had actually ordered another drink, and he assumed was loosening up a bit. He worked on his own drink in the meantime.

John, without distraction from talk, was paying half attention to the television news on in the corner and half to his drink, which didn't take all that terribly long to finish off.

On the news the biggest thing was the recent repair of Big Ben, from the damage caused by 'the crash' as it was called simply by the newscaster. Jack ignored it, watching with amusement as someone proved to be having horrible luck with their date.

John ordered a third drink - he knew he really shouldn't, but then, when had he ever listened to his better judgement? ...usually. He made a mental note to shut up his subconscious.

"Seems like you were worried for nothing." Jack told him as the bartender handed John his third drink. He'd gotten to just about halfway through his second. The people watching had proved more entertaining.

"It's not as bad as I thought," he replied, smiling very slightly. His third drink was thus far untouched, though - he was still a bit worried about the whole 'getting drunk' thing. Not that he wasn't a bit buzzed already.

"Just a matter of finding out your limits, more or less like anything else." He took another drink from his glass. "Most of the time the worst thing that could happen is making a fool of yourself in front of a bunch of strangers, and none of you remember it the next morning anyway."

"I guess.. but I still have to worry about you, don't I?" It was a joke.

"Right, and like I said I'll try to resist if in your drunken stupor you feel the need to seduce me." Jack joked in response, but it was something of a test as well.

John raised an eyebrow at that. "And what should I do if it's the other way around?" Okay, usually he probably wouldn't've asked that straight out.

"Well," Jack started. "I don't believe that any amount of this," He held up his near empty glass as an example. "Is going to get me into a drunken stupor so I don't believe you've got anything to worry about there."

"Good to know." He smiled slightly. "I wasn't sure if I should be afraid or not." Another joke, because... well, he wasn't afraid of Jack, obviously.

Jack grinned at him. "Afraid of me? If you'll note I only mentioned the drunken stupor part. Dare you overestimate my taste?" Joking was always good.

"Maybe. I wouldn't know," he said, then thought for a moment and added, "And I'm not afraid of you. Just what you might do... or maybe that Rose will decide not to rescue me, after all."

Jack couldn't help having his curiousity piqued by the last comment. "What's this about now?" He was a bit more amused then he should've been, probably, but it was fairly out of the blue for him.

"Just a joke I had with Rose." He shrugged, took a sip of his drink before elaborating on that. "That if I got locked up somewhere - or if you tried to take advantage of me, thanks - she'd come rescue me. I'm apparently not that good at rescuing myself."

"So that's how it is?" He pretended to be put out. "In that case I suppose it would only be fair to offer my own rescue services should she then end up captured herself. Oh, and I suppose if she tried to take advantage of you." Jack paused for a moment. "She hasn't, has she?"

Blink. "No." He said it flatly, shaking his head. "..I mean, obviously not.." Little embarrassing, there. Possibly because he might not have minded so much?

"Obviously." Jack agreed. "It's not as if you're handsome, intelligent and, oh, living under the same roof, say." He waved a hand dismissively. At times like this it was best to forget context, and just go with the flow.

"Dunno about the intelligent part." He shrugged. Embarrassed again, a bit. He did very much like Rose, even if she had lied to him. "Anyway, I don't think she cares for me. Not that way." If she did, well... he wasn't sure he'd even know how to react, then.

"Right, because physics teachers are known for their stupidity." Jack commented passingly, then held up his hands defensively. "Not going to say anything. Nope."

"..you already did say something," John pointed out, raising an eyebrow a bit at that.

"Oh, and what did I say exactly then?" Jack asks before finishing off his drink.

"You said you weren't going to say anything, which implies that you're thinking something and are taunting me." Convoluted logic, yes, but he wasn't exactly at his most sober.

"And..." Jack grins tauntingly. "Not going to say anything." He's almost to easy to tease, really. He almost feels the need to supply some sort of convoluted reasoning of why Rose would feel that way about him.

"Why not?" He asked, blinking. He'd rather expected him to give in on that one. Evidently not.

"Strictly confidential information." His tone is as formal as he can manage it, but really he's working on some fantastic thread to spin.

"..you're being unfair," he said, and almost sounded serious, honestly. He wasn't, though. Not really. Not very, anyway.

"Well it's hardly a banner of friendship to go toting around bits of vital information." Jack had a sudden inspired look. "What if I were to go back to the flat and mention your seeming...interest in this conversation?"

"...you can't," he said, staring at him for a moment. "Because I will lock you out." Once again, he'd forgotten that Jack had a key.

Jack didn't feel the need to bring the key up, he had a better way to tease right now. "Okay then, fair enough." Jack shrugged, and proceeded to pull a phone out of his pocket. "I'll just let her know me and her need a chat, come around my place."

"That's not even remotely fair. I'll take your phone away." Okay, he'd probably die trying, but it was the spirit that counted, or something. "Or... something."

Jack felt the need to reward him for the effort, like a puppy who'd missed the paper by an inch. "And when you're at school?" He couldn't help but keep going, just this little bit. As long as John didn't give up he'd tell him something, eventually.

"I..." He had to stop and think about that one, looking at the counter as if it had the answer. "...security system. Or I'll have my revenge."

"You're going to put the girl under lock and key and camera and alarms, rather then have me talk to her." He linked his fingers behind his head and gave John a pitying look. "I think you're smitten."

John blinked, looking up and then very sharply away again, muttering a sort of embarrassed, "I am not."

Jack leans forward, an elbow on the bar and, quite casually an arm around John's shoulder as he looks at him almost sympathetically. "Why're you so worried about her finding out about the conversation then? Because if she mentions it you are going to turn 10 shades of red and she is going to know it really happened."

He did turn a bit red at the suggestion, actually. "..I have better self-control than that." No, he really didn't. He would absolutely be embarrassed if she found out about it at all, let alone mentioning it to him.

"I don't believe you." Jack patted his shoulder. "Though, thinking back, I'm curious. What revenge are we taking on me when I tell her. Yes, when."

"It's not going to be a when." But he didn't sound terribly threatening, physics teacher and all. Not very good at math-ing people to death. "And I haven't figured it out yet, but I'm sure there's something I could come up with. Pushing you up on the roof and locking the door back down comes to mind."

Jack blinked at him. "Oh, I'm afraid now." His voice could not have sound less unintimidated if he had tried. "My fear of pigeons. Unbelievable." He shook his head sadly. "Un. Be. Lieveable."

"Well, they're vicious creatures. And it could be worse. I could lock you in Jackie's room. With Jackie." That was also a joke, for those keeping score.

"I'm hoping your trying to invoke the wrath of Rose upon me with that threat. Otherwise..." Jack sighed. "Just tell her, show her, something. If you don't, I will. Take some credit when you went for the walk to pick up dinner."

"..I dunno." He was watching the countertop again. It wasn't very interesting. "I'm not all that good at that, am I? I don't know what she'd say anyway."

"Worst thing happens she laughs in your face, you room with me for a few weeks and you never have to see her again. Best case scenario..." Jack didn't bother to explain the 'best case'.

"..I'm thinking 'worst case' is more likely, though." He smiled fleetingly. "Dunno how good I'd be at saying anything in the first place." Probably abysmal. But he couldn't think of any prior experience he might have had.

Jack pulled his arm back, putting his hand on his chest. "That, is what you have me for. I am perfectly capable of talking."

"Oh, no. I don't trust you in that," he remarked, shaking his head. He trusted Jack to talk, just... not to Rose about him. Then again, he didn't much trust himself for that, either.

"Someone has to. You don't seem willing. I know when to say something and when not to." Jack meant about yesterday, but he wasn't sure if John would realize that.

He didn't, quite. "..you're going to get me into trouble," he accused. Had no real idea how true that was, either.

"Depends on the type of trouble you want." Jack was actually being fairly serious now. Soon, he thought, he might ask why he'd really gone off on his walk.

"I guess there's not an option for 'no trouble', is there?" He asked, a bit curious. He was going to have to get used to that idea.

"Their might have been, but not now." Jack told him. "So it's just a matter of choosing your trouble, picking your poison, or answering a question."

A pause. "..what question?" He took another sip of his drink while he waited for an answer.

"Why did you go for the walk yesterday, really?" He was serious, and tried to hide the fact behind a gulp of drink.

He hadn't expected that question, and frowned slightly, taking another sip of his drink before answering, putting it off. "..got into an argument with Rose," he muttered. He didn't like saying it.

"What about?" His voice was softer, but just as serious. He crossed the fingers on the hand holding his glass.

"She... it's a long story." He sighed, looking at his glass so he wouldn't look at Jack. "She lied to me. About... a lot of things, and not all of it got explained. So... I left. She doesn't know I did." That wasn't all of it. It was enough to make him uncomfortable, though - he didn't like being lied to. Liked less talking about the awkward gaps in his memory.

"How do you know she lied?" It was an easier question then 'what did she lie about'. Jack knew, almost everything. It'd be easier to ask what she didn't lie about. He crossed his fingers harder.

"I.. asked her. She told me to ask her any question, yes or no. I asked her if she lied to me." He drew in a breath, more slowly than necessary. "I asked her if she lied a lot. And... she said she did." He drew his hands back from the counter, crossing his arms over his chest almost protectively. He was so much more vulnerable human.

Jack wasn't sure what the response would be, but he put his arm back over John's shoulders anyway. "Did she tell you why?" He was asking quietly now, and his hand had left the glass.

He shook his head. Didn't shrug off the arm around his shoulders. "No. Not.. really." Someone wanted him dead. He didn't know why, or who. That was all. "She said... someone's trying to kill me."

Jack has a sudden urge to ask what the hell she'd do that for, but he knows that Rose is the one he has to ask about that. Getting...annoyed won't help anything right now. He pondered instead the idea of wandering off on your own when you've just been told you're wanted dead. He couldn't help but think Rose must have told him more then that. "So you decide it's a good idea to go off on your own." Jack paused. "Did you believe her?"

"Dunno what to believe." He shrugged, smiling faintly and without much feeling at the counter. "She said.. some of the things I remember aren't real. I don't know how much is or isn't, or... what to think about it." The smile he'd been trying to keep, so he wouldn't seem as bitter and empty as he felt, failed him then.

Jack frowned as he listened. "And then she left you alone, to wonder what she'd just been on about." He guessed, still not quite sure why. He was careful to avoid mentioning the actual topics. "When she told you, how did she seem?"

"..to let me think." He drew in a breath, let it out slowly before continuing. "She was worried. I think, I mean, I'm not a good judge. She seemed... sad, I guess, a bit."

Guilty, Jack thought, and realized there was something to it there. It dawned on him that Rose had gotten attached. "Come on." He said to the other man, getting up. "This isn't going to do anything. I'm afraid you two are on the same boat." This wasn't good.

John blinked, surprised by the sudden decision Jack seemed to make. "What do you mean?" He asked, looking up at him, confused.

"No doubt you'll figure it out. I need to talk to Rose." While it might've waited until morning, or later on, he thought the sooner the better. Jack's expression was serious.

"Ah, alright..." He stood, since he wasn't about to let Jack leave without him - that would probably be bad, right?

Jack left a few bills on the counter, and waited for John before he started out of the bar.

John followed him out, glancing back only briefly before they left. This was worrying him - Jack's reaction was just odd, and... he was very confused. Again.

"Well, you should be glad to know that you've got the proof she likes you." Jack commented once he'd gone out the door. He was thinking clearly, though the thoughts themselves almost burned.

"I... do?" Well, he certainly hadn't noticed it! "What do you mean?" That was the second time in five minutes he'd had to ask that question.

"You're repeating yourself." Jack informed him. "Think about it. What happened yesterday." The fact that she couldn't handle lieing to you. If she didn't like him it would hardly matter would it?

"...I.. guess." He had to consider it. In a way, it still didn't make sense - why lie to him, then? - but... in a way, it did make sense, too.

Jack didn't realize how brisk he'd been walking until they were at the door of the flat. He fumbled for a moment with the key, but soon it was unlock and he strode through the doorway, the empty living room, a hallway and stopped only to knock on Rose's door, hard.

John closed the door behind them, perplexed, hovering in the hall as if unsure of quite what to do with himself. The sudden change of circumstance over the last several minutes had him off-balance.

Rose opened the door to her room, perplexed. Her confusion only grew as Jack pushed past her into the room. She closed the door at his word, and for minutes the barest details of conversation could be heard. Most of it seemed to consist of Rose defending something, her voice soft. Once she stopped talking Jack was heard, louder then she had been. "Give me the watch." Shocked, Rose didn't respond.

John didn't mean to listen in. He honestly didn't, but he couldn't help hearing that last and wondering at it. The watch? What on earth did that have to do with anything?

Jack repeated himself, and this time Rose cried out, her voice desperate. "No!" His voice was calm at her protest. "You won't do it, when the time comes. You can't even lie to him for his own good. He left afterwards, and you never even knew. They almost had him, would have if I hadn't found him. Rose. Give me the watch." She was silent again, for a few moments. "He said..." Her voice was barely audible.

He was staring at the door, and it took him several minutes to actually realize that. She wouldn't do what? He wanted to ask, but he couldn't find space or thought or energy to move or speak. Anything other than breathing was beyond him. Who were 'they'? The ones that wanted to kill him?

"Rose." Jack's voice was softer as he interrupted her. "We promised him. I'll keep it safe. Give me the watch." There was a faint tinkling of a chain, and the sound of bedsprings. "Thank you." He told her, making his way out of the room. She was crying into a pillow, and Jack was very thankful that Jackie was not there. He knew Rose would understand later.

John was still staring at the door, and by extension Jack and into the room itself once the door was open. He blinked, looking up and focusing on Jack briefly. "...what happened?" He asked, his voice softer than he meant it, the words feeling clumsier than they came out in his mouth. "What's going on?" He wished he thought they would tell him.

Jack looked at him, for a moment not seeing him. First the face, then the rest of the man, John Smith. "We promised him." He told the idea, and now he was the one repeating himself. It was the closest thing to an apology he would give.

"Who?" He didn't understand, and it took him a long moment to realize that there was something fundamentally wrong-feeling about this. He had known from the outset that there was a large chunk of story missing, something that he felt like he ought to know but didn't, but it seemed now that was a great deal larger than he'd thought.

"A Doctor." Jack didn't know about the dreams. Rose had told him about them the same way she had told him about the first flowers, she hadn't. He walked away, because he didn't want to explain or not explain. A hand in his pocket gripped the watch. He thought of telling John to talk to Rose, or not to talk to Rose but in the end he did neither. "I might not be back for a few days. Sorry about cutting the night short."

John, puzzled, looked at him going. "..s'alright," he muttered, still confused, but... a doctor. Not doctor, but Doctor, he was willing to wager. What did this have to do with his dreams? He wanted to ask, but he was almost afraid of the answer.

Jack nodded to him in goodbye and left the flat as simply as that. Part of him wondering if there was anything in the Tardis that could fog his mind some. The door to Rose's room was still open, and she stared into the dark form of her pillow.

John paused, considering for a moment before he stepped to her doorway quietly, unsure whether or not to dare crossing the threshold. "..Rose?" His voice was hesitant.

Rose turned to look at him, making a questioning noise. Her face was blotchy, and her pillow damp. She wondered if he'd been listening.

"..you alright?" He asked, again hesitant. He wasn't going to ask her about what he'd heard, or what Jack said. Not... yet, anyway.

"...Yeah." She decided as she sat up, moving her legs over the side of the bed. Rose reasoned that there was nothing actually wrong with her, save an emptyness in her pocket. She played with the edge of her pillow.

"You sure? ..dunno what he was on about," he was talking about Jack, obviously, "but I'm sorry... I.. probably said something I shouldn't've." He did feel guilty, because it was his fault Jack had come storming back.

"No. Not your fault." She tried to smile at him reassuringly, but couldn't quite manage. "It's mine." Rose thought for a moment. "Doesn't make a difference now, anyway."

"..why not?" He thought he was asking an awful lot of questions that day. It was odd and uncomfortable, being the only one who didn't know anything.

"Three weeks." Rose tried to meet his eyes. "That's all." She didn't know when she'd decided that maybe it could be longer. It couldn't be now. "After that..." She fought for how to word it. "You go back to your flat."

"My flat that doesn't exist," he replied - not accusingly, more thoughtfully. Trying to puzzle out her meaning from that, without any way of knowing. He couldn't comprehend of the idea of going 'back' to a place that didn't exist - of course, the possibility that he would cease to exist didn't cross his mind.

She nodded, stood and started accross the room. "I'm sorry." Rose tried to think of something more to say. "I..." She let the sentence drift, unsure of how to get the things milling around inside her head into it.

"I don't understand," he admitted, his voice sounded smaller than he'd meant, and he only noticed it peripherally. "How can I go back to a place that doesn't exist?" He had a horrible feeling, anxiety that tightened his throat and left him almost dizzy, unsure. He didn't know what it was.

She stopped close in front of him, and cast her head downwards. "You won't." Rose whispered to him. She wondered how she would explain it, could explain it, when she wasn't sure of how the whole thing worked herself.

"..then what's going to happen? In three weeks.." He wanted to understand. If only because the explanation might make that awful sinking feeling go away.

"In three weeks, the ones that... He is hiding from die. And He can stop hiding." The absence of weight in her pocket reminded her that Jack had taken the watch. "Will."

"He?" Confused again, but that feeling was back, stronger, like a headache that wouldn't go away. "..you mean the.. the doctor that Jack mentioned?" The one in his dreams, he wondered, but didn't say.

"Yeah. The Doctor." Rose confirmed, on both accounts, raising her eyes to meet his. "I can't do anything about it now." She confessed to him.

"I don't..." He shook his head, thought for a moment, and tried again. "..I don't understand what this has to do with me." But he was beginning to get an idea, and he tried to push it out of his mind.

"The..." She sought out the words. "The wrong bits. The dreams. They... They're not yours. They were... Missed, or something. Remnants."

"Remnants of... of what?" Pause. "..of this.. Doctor, right?" He wasn't positive. But it was enough of a guess. She knew about the dreams already, so it didn't feel as... as crazy.

"Yeah." Her brows knitted together as she thought, and an idea hit her. Rose tried to explain carefully. "It's like, he hid the bits of him that made him him away, but a few got left behind and you're...sort of a screensaver. Something there while he's away, and in three weeks someone's gonna wiggle the mouse."

He looked away, listening without looking. Understanding without wanting to, because who on earth or elsewhere (or elsewhen, for that matter) would like to hear that they don't really exist? "..so I'm not.. real, then. Just a... a face, keeping the body warm." He said it flatly, without anger or accusation. He wasn't sure he could come to terms with that. That he was an idea but not a person.

"I think." She felt it would be distasteful to tell him that no, he's not even a face, just the thoughts. Rose touched his arm lightly. "But... you haven't been a 'just'." She told him as she looked off, just to the right of his head.

"...but I will be. Three weeks from now. Like dying." It was a bit like that, he realized. Like he was being told that he would die. And someone else would take his place, someone who was supposed to be there anyway. Who was him but not.

She thought idly of the idea of the Doctor having dreams of being John Smith. Rose expected they'd be nightmares for him. "He's got the watch and... We did promise." She told him hopelessly.

"It's not your fault." A traitorous little voice in the back of his head said it was, and he ignored it. They weren't killing him; you can't kill what never properly existed in the first place. "I didn't know. Dunno why I'd expect to." He tried very hard not to sound hurt, or upset, though he sort of was, in a way that he didn't want to admit.

"Yes it is. I...did it." She wondered how best to explain. Remembered pressing the button the Doctor had told her to, looking over expectantly and then... The screams. "Then I couldn't keep my mouth shut like I was supposed to."

"..more my.. subconscious that couldn't keep it's mouth shut," he replied, trying to force his tone into lighter regions and failing miserably.

"I'll yell at him for you." Rose told him. "Or, you could leave him a note? 'Clean up after yourself better'?" She tried to joke.

He smiled faintly, shaking his head. "..just give him the journal. He should get the idea." He had been hoping that would come out less morose than it did. Damn it.

"Okay." She hesitated for a moment. "You've still got time. If there's anything, anything you want to do. Ask."

He thought for a minute. "...this is usually the part where the dying one asks to go to Disneyland, isn't it?" he asked, and this time his attempts at making light worked at least fractionally.

"Dunno if we can get one of the foundations to sponsor you. Might be a bit hard to explain the circumstances." She gave a small smile. "I think you might check out as a bit to healthy for them."

"Well, you know.. they must have some kind of program for.. is it metaphorical death? Something like that." He managed a small smile himself. "I mean, it could be a problem like with multiple personality disorder. You know, what do you do if one personality dies?" This was getting towards another of his rambling jokes.

"I'd imagine stop taking the meds, or switch to ones for depression, or something." Rose realized she might be putting a bit to much thought into the answer. "Maybe get let out?"

"Saved from the asylum, yeah.. with the tinfoil, then? Or is that just us?"

"Just us." Rose tells him, and wonders what would happen if she showed up in front of the Tardis in tinfoil. He'd think she'd lost it.

Most likely. If it were the Doctor, and not John - because John would just laugh - he would probably give her that look, bemused and a bit concerned, as if he weren't quite sure if she was mad or just confused.

"Good. I'm glad - can't have anyone else stealing our style." He smiled faintly at that.

"Could you imagine the inconvenience when staging a rescue? 'Where would the room of the tinfoiled one be? Hypothetically' 'That's ward t' It'd take agaes."

"It'd get complicated. And the whole thing about rescues is they're supposed to, you know, come off without a hitch." He was starting to relax, a bit. Forcing himself to push back the thought of 'three weeks from now'.

"They never do though, really. Always something, or where's the fun?" Rose couldn't help but ask.

"Fair enough." He smiled a little. "If it weren't for the complications... well, we'd never have any fun. Or get much done, either, I think."

"Probably not." She admitted, "But I think it'd probably end up with more getting done. Just nothing to work out. It just turns into busywork."

"That would mean I'd actually have to grade those exams." He made a bit of a face at that.

"You've still got the whole weekend for them though. I can't think of any convenient complications for you." She teased him. "Unless you'd like to call up some foundations to ask about Disney."

"You know... I do wonder what their reactions would be.." He grinned. "Could be fun. Interesting, anyway... and most importantly, it puts off grading."

"You could just not go back. Not worry about the grading at all. Go make a day out of mucking around in Cardiff or something." She jokes. "Bring my cell along."

"I could... but they'd hunt me down and bring me back, I bet. Or something." He thought for a minute. "You could come with. They could be like assassins, they only strike when you're alone."

She looks at him from under her eyelashes, and blinks quickly. "Well we can't have that, can we?" Rose asks him. "I guess your arguement leaves me with not choice."

"I'm glad.. I mean, I don't want to get kidnapped by school officials." He looked at her, smiling - this time without real reservation.

"Oh yes, dreadful things." She smiles back. "I'll bet they've even got a base hidden down under the Millenium Center."

"Yeah, and they'll have cells, of course. Old rusted things with creaking doors and stone. Like a prison in the movies." He paused, adding, "Also, they may attempt to clone me. Which would be... unpleasant."

"Though, depending on how well, might solve your problem." Rose realizes. "Big run on cells lately though, seems like. But then, Cardiff, wouldn't underestimate it."

"It could, but.. weird clone of me running around, no. That just wouldn't work. Not even in Cardiff."

"I guess not." She agrees. "But, really, never wanted to be able to be in two places at once?"

"..well, it'd be useful, but.. weird. Not much on the clone idea, really." He shrugged. "Anyway, you never know what they'd use it for."

"Teaching physics?" Rose suggested. "Cheap labor? Furthering cloning stuff?" She racked her mind for more ideas.

"Or world domination. I am clever like that." He grinned, winking.

"Ooh, forgot that one. But what would they want to dominate the world for? Force everyone back into the school systems?"

"...could be. Or they could have even more devious plans. Forcing everyone to eat cafeteria food, maybe."

Rose shuddered. "Can't have that. Maybe we should steer clear of Cardiff, just in case. Wander till we find somewhere scenic to make the call?"

"That sounds like a much better idea. Someplace scenic and... non-creepy. Non-Cardiff, too."

"Then it's a date." She tell him, with a grin. "Though one with extremely limited transportation."

"Right. Well, it shouldn't be too bad. Limited transportation's fine, as long as we stay far away from the school." He grinned, too, amused - this was managing to overshadow what happened before at least a bit.

"Deal. Think we should get some sleep then, so we can get an early start to head out? Far from schools and Cardiff."

He nodded. "See you in the morning, then."

"Yeah, see you. Goodnight." She back up towards her bed.

He turned to go to his couch, displacing the papers he'd set down before and the journal, shifting them to the coffee table before sitting down. He didn't immediately go to sleep. He had a lot to think about.

There was a week left. The thought was heavy on Rose's mind as she looked at the calender, the majority of it filled with x-es and the circled date below the current one. It had been two weeks since Jack took the watch, and then showed up at her door 3 days later and handed it back. When she'd asked him why, he'd said it wasn't his decision to make. She didn't know if she hated him more for taking it or giving it back, and she hadn't told John.

Wasn't sure how she could. What he'd think if he knew his life was more or less back in her hands. She crossed out another box, and put the calender back in her drawer. He'd be back soon, probably, and she imagined it would seem a bit grim, marking off the days until it was safe. There was a knock on the door and Rose moved to answer it. She figured it was John, that maybe he'd lost his key, and was surprised when she came face to face with Jack.

"Where's John?" His voice was serious, and before she had a chance to respond he'd continued. "The school says he left an hour ago, he never passed by." Jack had hoped he'd just taken a different route. "He's not here." Rose told him, mind racing. She wondered if this was it. "I'll get my coat."

Within a few minutes the two were on their way. They checked everywhere they could think of, asked around about his description, but came up with nothing. Jack cursed his wrist-computer's lack of ability in singling out humans. They tried the building the girl had disapeared into, without luck. He was about to suggest trying the school, then doubling back to the flat, when Rose's phone rang. She answered it quickly, hoping it was him.

"Hello?"

"You lied to us." The raspy, slightly pneumonic voice came from the man standing some bare inches from John's shoulder, as he'd ended up with his back to the wall.

He hadn't been sure what was happening when one of the other teachers had asked him to help them with something, on the computer. He'd figured it out in short order, and reflected that he should have kept Jack's and Rose's warnings in mind. He'd forgotten, been careless, and now... he was paying the price.

"This is not a Time Lord!" The woman's voice carried, though she was standing by John's other shoulder, blocking any avenue of escape.

"Who is this?" Rose's voice was confused. "Lied about what? I don't know what you're talking about, I've never spoken to you in my life-" She was cut off as Jack took the phone out of her hand, holding it to an ear, just in time to hear the second sentence.

"It's not." He barely recognized the voice, and what he was saying was enough to tell him who was calling even if he hadn't. "There's no such thing." Jack's voice was more confident then he felt right now. "So let him go."

"We identified this man as a Time Lord," the man said then, looking at John with a scowl that made him feel sick somehow. "How is he not?!"

"They lied, Father of mine." That was the little girl, hanging back some, her voice soft over the phone. "Tricking us."

"How could we trick you? You must be mistaken. The man you have is human." He held the phone against his ear with a shoulder, fingers working on the device on his wrist. He doubted he'd be able to track the call, but it would be worth a shot. "You've got no need for him, let him go. There are no TIme Lords here." Rose watched him, listening in on the conversation. An idea struck her, and she whispered it into Jack's free ear. He paused from his administrations to the computer and though.

John was more than worried - he realized, quickly, that he was afraid. Inability to move made him forget the fear, because the natural human reaction to fear was to run. So there was something to say for being cornered.

"Why let him go? He's still useful." The woman's voice was nearly monotone, but came close to some sort of sticky sweetness. Taunting them, perhaps.

It would be an understatement to say that her words bothered Jack. He thought of Rose's suggestion, with a little bit of alteration... "Then how about a trade?" His voice kept something of a calm as he continued, though there was a threat underneath. "The trouble that will come your way if anything happens to him will far outway any 'use'." He was pacing as he spoke now, feet slamming against the pavement to keep from yelling into the phone. He didn't notice Rose's questioning look.

"Oh? But you ran from us the last time. There isn't anything that you can do," the man accused, idly tapping the phone cord.

"Your first mistake was when you followed." Jack's face was dark now. "Because you see, in my past I've had some pretty simple ways of dealing with things, when I had to. The one who would've stopped that, isn't quite here. I know you have a week to live, I have no problems with giving you alot less time."

"We will live on!" the man insisted, scowling at the telephone. "You will give us the Time Lord, or we will buy ourselves another day by using this man." It probably wouldn't last a whole day, but... waste not, want not, and all of that.

"If anything happens to that man, you will never get the Time Lord." The truth in the statement was doubly so. But now it was time to try his plan, he made sure Rose couldn't hear him before he spoke. "You want immortality. I have a trade in mind that you could do nothing but benefit from."

The man grinned, and John got that sick-sinking feeling again. "Do tell," the man said to Jack, for the moment ignoring the physics teacher they'd cornered.

"The little girl saw something, in that house." He stared at a wall as he spoke. "I'll take his place. Worst case scenario you're no better or worse off then if you used him. What do you say?" Jack's voice was low.

A pause. "..that is an adequate exchange," the man said, nodding to the phone as if Jack could see it.

It crossed John's mind that this probably wouldn't be 'adequate' as far as anyone else was concerned. He could only just barely hear what Jack was saying, but...

"Tell me where I can meet you." Jack said, his voice steady. He let his voice be a little louder now, Rose had suggested the premise of a trade herself. He doubted this is what she had in mind though.

The man gave their location - a second-floor classroom in the school where John taught - matter-of-factly. "You will be here soon. Or we will act first."

The threat was clear. And, by now, so was what Jack (and presumably Rose) was planning.

"I'm on my way. But first let me talk to him, and make sure you haven't done anything already." It was chancy to ask, but it made sense in the situation. He jerked his head to signal Rose to follow him, and started in the direction of the school.

The man raised an eyebrow at the phone, but nodded. "You will speak briefly." He practically shoved the phone into John's hand, fumbled slightly when he caught it up.

"Jack?" He asked, keeping his eyes on the man.

"Do me a favor and don't do anything stupid." Jack whispered fiercely into the phone. It was always good to be safe, just in case. While his current idea wasn't quite planned all the way through, he had an idea that if the man tried something they'd be worse off then they'd started.

"Then you have to do the same," he replied softly, keeping his voice even and level out of sheer force of will. He didn't like where this was going.

"I'll be there soon." He said simply, hanging up the phone. Rose caught up to him and he handed it back to her. She was looking at him questioningly, but he wasn't sure yet what to tell her. After some thought, he decided quickly. "You'll wait outside, and John will come out first. Go wait with him in the Tardis, and I'll be there as soon as I deal with some unfinished business." He acted the part someone who'd managed a simple, foolproof plan and did it well. It helped that he didn't look at her as he spoke. In the end, they reached the school, and she waited, grudgingly, outside. He was thankful that she hadn't figured out the plan, she'd kill him, and he didn't have the time to waste.

The phone in the classroom had been hung up, and the Family waited in quiet for Jack's arrival. John tried not to fidget or otherwise show his nervousness, watching the door. Waiting for... rescue, ironically. What he and Rose had joked about.

A few minutes later, Jack had navigated the halls and was knocking on the door to the classroom. He decided it was probably a better idea then barging in, that was more the thing to do when you planned to take someone by surprise.

"Come in," the woman called. The Mother, John had heard her called by the girl. "We've been waiting." The tone might have been sweet, but it had a sinister edge.

Jack opened the door and entered the room casually. "Sorry, not much experience in navigating schools." His attempt at a joke was rather weak, and probably unneccessary. He nodded a greeting to John.

John nodded in return, but his expression was puzzled - worried and confused. What was Jack planning, and where was Rose? "Jack..." But the look the man one of those things gave him shut him up quickly.

"The exchange, then," the woman said, nodding. Phrasing it almost as a question.

Jack held the door open. "Rose is waiting by the main entrance." He told John, carefuly not to say the other things on his mind. 'I'm here.' To them, 'I'll catch up later' to John. There was no need to rifle either side.

Almost bold, just for a moment, John pushed out of his corner and past the Family, surprised and nearly stopping when they didn't stop him. When he reached Jack he did pause, asking in a whisper, "What are you planning?"

Jack whispered back. "Let's just say that you should get down there before she comes up here. I'm sure neither of you will want to see the aftermath." He hoped he'd worded it right, and it seemed true enough. It was also a bit more reassuring then 'Nothing'.

"Jack.." There was that bad feeling again. But he nodded finally, looking at the doorway. "I'll tell her you'll be down soon, right?"

He left before Jack had a chance to answer. He wasn't sure he wanted to hear it, and if he could ignore it... He got down the stairs and out the front doors as quickly as he could - no sense in worrying anyone.

Jack shut the door behind him.

Rose was next to him almost as soon as he came through the doors. She didn't speak immediately, not sure exactly what was best to say, but she looked somewhat relieved. "Come on, we're supposed to wait at Jack's." She held out a hand.

John nodded, looking back at the school briefly before he took her hand. He wanted to run back in there, to make sure of what was happening. And holding her hand kept him from doing that.

The Family watched Jack carefully, and the woman spoke up eventually. "Let the exchange begin. I'm sure you will give us life adequately." Not as well as a Time Lord, but there was something of time about this man.

Jack thought for a moment of the Tardis key he'd slipped into Rose's phone before he gave it back. He'd heard the stories of Adam, and didn't want to take any chances. Hoping that they'd listen, and not come back in, Jack nodded.

Rose tried not to wonder what was going on inside the school. Jack had to have a plan of some sort. Instead she turned to John. "Sorry we forgot the tinfoil." She joked. Everything would be fine.

John smiled faintly. He would have to trust Jack with this. There was no other choice - there was nothing that he could do. "..Well, that's alright. Rescue bit went on okay, at least."

"That's good." Rose said, looking over her shoulder for a second. "I keep expecting to hear some sort of 'boom' or something." She admitted to him.

"..me, too. Or.. something." His smile faded, looking back to the building. "..some sign of life would be nice." He would really, really appreciate one. Otherwise he had no idea what Jack was doing.

"Yeah..." She agreed. "We should keep going though." Rose seemed hesitant about the idea as she said it. "I... Couldn't hear anything he said over the phone. All he told me was to take you to the... place he's staying."

He thought for a moment, eyes still on the school. "I..." He took a breath and tried saying it again."I should go back. If something went wrong.." What? What would he do? He didn't know. But he wanted to try.

"No... We..." She trailed off, before her eyes lit up as she thought of something. "My phone, I should be able to call back the number and..." Rose dug for it quickly, cradling the other contents of her pockets, watch included, to her chest with an arm. Finally she unearthed it triumphantly.

"Good idea," he smiled a bit at that, nodding. His eye caught the watch, but he didn't muse on it too long, waiting for her to make the call.

She flipped it open, one handed and something fell to the ground from inside it with a metallic sound. Rose paused her search into the phone's history to see what had fallen. A few seconds later her eyes found it, and she dropped to her knees as she stared at the Tardis key. She looked at it in disbelief for a few seconds, before starting to curse.

"What?" John frowned, looking down at the small metal key. "What is it?" Something in him recognized it, almost, as if it were lurking on the edge of memory. Perhaps it was.

Rose didn't answer him immediately, instead stuffing the things she was holding back into her pockets. She picked up the key, gripping it tightly as she held it up, and then standing. "A key, to a certain box." She was almost fuming now. "This means, that he tricked us. Not them." She turned her attention to the school, glaring at it. "I'll kill him."

"What did he do? What d'you mean?" A box... he wondered what box she meant. The one in his dreams, the ones that were, evidently, real? Or.. something else? It was terribly confusing.

She shook her head. "I don't know. But if he gave me this, he's not planning on coming back, didn't want them to get it." Rose wondered what she could do. She thought back on what she could hear of the conversation. What had that idiot done?

"An exchange," he said after a moment, staring at the school again, his tone hushed but audible. "They mentioned an exchange. He's offered them a trade." The realization, perhaps belated, made him feel stupid and sick at once.

The realization that hit Rose with John's words made the sinking feeling in her stomach a thousand times worse. She turned to him. "I.. suggested lieing, telling them he had something to trade, just to figure out where they were but..." She shook her head again.

"..but he really means to do it. Or I think he does, and that's just as bad as actually doing it." He glanced at Rose, dead serious this time - and he didn't sound as worried. More determined, maybe.

"I didn't mean him." It was a whisper, and she was still more angry then anything. Rose took a deep breath, and thrust the key towards John. A few moments of wrapping something in her pocket later, she handed him a small object in a handkerchief. She thrust that out to him too. "There's a blue box around the corner from the flat." She doubted heavily that he'd listen, but part of her had to try. "There's a blaster, and something else on the seat. I'm going to see what's going on."

"I should come, too." He looked down at the objects in his hands, putting them both in his pocket - he didn't have time to be too curious. "You could get hurt. Those things... they're what you were saying want to kill me, right? Or wanted to, anyway. They might kill you." He felt so useless, and he hated it.

"I'm just saying get the things and come back. They could care less about me. I don't think they even know who I am." Her voice was firm. "I won't do anything until you get back, unless I've got no choice. I'm the idiot who let him go in himself."

"..I'll be back, then. Quick as I can." He nodded, taking off in the indicated direction. He didn't even have time to be more than impressed by the blue box that opened into a full-on control room (how did he know it was a control room, anyway?), racing the clock to get what Rose had told him to.

This place was so damn familiar. It felt like home. It sent a chill through him, that thought. It wasn't his home - it was the home of the person he was supposed to be. Not him.

There were two objects sitting on a chair near the console. One of them was a silver cylinder, the other looked vaguely gunlike, but in an almost 'toy' way. There was a note sitting, folded beneath them.

He picked up the silver thing - blaster, Rose had said - before he picked up the note, unfolding it one-handed to look at it. He figured he ought to, since he was told to get it...

'Chances are, if you're reading this, there's a problem and you're here for some 'sonicing'. The blaster's battery is dead, but it could still be good for a bluff. I don't know if you're Rose, or John, but either way you'd both be better off just staying in here, safe, till the time's passed. I've got an idea of what I might have done, and by the time you're here it probably doesn't make a difference. If not, hopefully I've bought myself some time with the note. Try not to have any hard feelings, Jack.'

John cursed under his breath, stepping back and putting the folded paper in his pocket with the handkerchief-covered item Rose had given him and the TARDIS key. The blaster he didn't bother to let out of his hand, looking back just once at the TARDIS's controls before he went back outside, running back to the school, and to Rose.

She was standing at the door to the school, cursing at the lock as she tried unsuccessfully to free it with a bobby pin. Apparently they'd felt the need to lock the doors, she hoped things were going wrong for them.

"I got it," he told her when he got there, catching his breath briefly as long as the doors were still closed. "..door's locked?" Obviously. Duh.

"Yeah." She turned to him. "Let me see the screwdriver." Rose told him in greeting, the school had been very quiet.

"Screwdriver?" He vaguely realized what she was talking about, or probably talking about, getting the sonic screwdriver out of the inner pocket of his suit - he hadn't even remembered it being there 'till it was mentioned. Funny defense mechanisms a Time Lord in hiding put into his 'mask's.

Rose took it out of his hand, pointing it at the keyhole and pressing the button hopefully. A few seconds later she heard tumblers fall, and the door opened. She was thankful for its cooperation. "You lead the way." He knew where the room was, and he also had the blaster.

"Right." No time to be surprised by the door opening, he led the way through the halls and up the stairs. "..how'd they get the school so empty, so fast?" He asked, mostly just himself.

"I don't know. Don't know if I want to know." Rose told him. "Maybe they just pulled the fire alarm or something." She doubted it.

"We can always hope." He didn't mention that if they had done that, the floors would be wet from the automatic sprinkler system. He didn't want to think about it. "This way." He pointed out the hallway before them, to the left, going to the door and stopping short, listening in. He wasn't Rambo - breaking down doors didn't work.

Rose followed him through the halls, eventually stopping near him, the sonic screwdriver still clutched in her hand. If nothing else it might be able to gain a moment's hesitation from something.

John didn't hear Jack's voice. Just the low voices of the Family, and it made him uneasy enough to push open the door abruptly just to be sure he wouldn't back out. He raised the broken blaster, taking in the scene - horrified by what he saw.

Rose stayed next to him, holding out the screwdriver. She fought the urge to run accross the room to where Jack was, sprawled out on the floor and too still. "We're taking him." Her voice was calmer then she felt, and it took her a moment to realize that it had been her that spoke.

John nodded. "You're not going to stop us." He kept his tone level because he had no choice. Showing weakness to these things would not help. It could only hurt them.

"By all means," the woman laughed. Laughed, at them. "It's only a body. Congratulations. Your friend has granted us immortality."

She kept the screwdriver leveled at them as she moved, quickly over to him just in case. She ignored their words as she knelt beside him, one eye still focusing on them. Part of her wished they'd just leave, go on with whatever it was they'd wanted to live forever to do. She was almost afraid to touch him.

John took a couple of steps into the room, glancing at Rose and Jack, but keeping his attention - and the threat of the dead blaster - on the Family. "..we should get him out of here," he said to Rose, though his eyes were still on the peculiar murderers before him.

"Yeah." Rose agreed, trying to figure out how to go about moving him. In the end she managed to more or less bear-hug him, moving slowly to her feet. He was lighter then he seemed, but she still struggled some with the weight. The way she had him his head was hanging over her shoulder, and she was still in a state of almost disbelief.

John moved to help, wary of the Family but convinced, by now, that they weren't going to do anything. Jack was dead, and... well, they'd already said they had no use for him. Getting Jack out of the school and... somewhere safe was more important.

With John's help Jack became alot easier to manuever. "Where should we go?" She asked quietly, once they'd left the room, the hallway, and almost the school. Rose realized that she'd been spending too much time lately carrying people.

"..I dunno. Probably not the flat." Jackie would flip. And anyway, they couldn't be totally sure that was safe. But... "The box?" It was as good a suggestion as any. And it was big enough - well, on the inside.

"Yeah... The Tardis." She named it for him, right now she could care less about keeping secrets. Her mind wandered, if only she hadn't been so dense, or had kept the screwdriver with her like the watch... Jack himself was an all to solid reminder of his current state.

"..there. It should be safe, right?" And once they were safe... what? He wasn't sure. But it was the beginning of a plan. Not, maybe, a good one, but one nonetheless.

Rose nodded absently. "Safest place in the world." She remembered the Doctor's words, something about the collective hoardes of Genghis Khan.

John more or less led the way there, unlocking the door with the key that was still in his pocket. It wasn't hard to get there, but it was difficult to avoid being seen - people would wonder, wouldn't they, about people lugging around a.. body? That could be bad.

She followed after him dully, there was a cot set up off to the side and Rose went toward it to set him down. Couldn't just put him on the floor. She felt drained.

John helped, and once Jack was.. well, lying down, he looked around, a bit.. lost, in more ways than one. "..that's it, then," he muttered, half to himself.

Rose sank down next to the cot until she was sitting on the floor, leaning against it. "Yeah." Her mind filled with all the reasons why this was her fault. She looked up at John. "You have it." She whispered.

"..what?" He blinked, not quite understanding for a moment. He had a number of things shoved into his hands recently, after all.

"Wrapped up." Rose couldn't tell him straight out that he had the watch. Didn't know really why she'd given it to him. She toyed with the screwdriver, turning it around in her hands.

"Hm?" He took the handkerchief-wrapped object out of his pocket, peering at it for a moment before unwrapping it. "..this watch.." He glanced at Rose.

"He's inside it." Once again, Rose didn't specify. "As long as you don't open it." She warned. Wondered what would happen if he did, what the Doctor'd say about the scene. She thought he'd probably blame himself.

He looked at the watch for a while, tracing the designs over the front of it with his finger. 'He' was inside it... "I'll stay, if I don't open it," he muttered.

"Yes." She told him, putting the screwdriver back into her pocket, then turning around. Rose stared at Jack, or his body or... Wondered why he'd done it, when they could've tried to come up with some kind of plan. A better plan.

He looked at her, then back to the watch. It was a strange feeling, holding one's own mortality - well, not literally, but figuratively - in one's own hands. To choose between himself and who he was supposed to be. It was a heavy feeling.

There was a small turner at the top of the watch, for tuning the clock in it. It was a button, as well, to open the clasp, and his finger hovered over it as he held the fob watch in the palm of his hand.

"Sorry." A whisper. Because he had to, because it was what he ought to do. Because the man he wasn't but should be knew better what to do. Because John Smith was useless. Because he shouldn't exist. "Sorry, Rose."

The button, when pressed, activated the clasp, slowly swinging open the pocketwatch, a shimmering gold substance sneaking out, touching his hand and spreading up his arm. He had the time to comprehend of its strangeness, and the bizarre creeping feeling of it on his skin, before he collapsed.

By the time Rose had turned around to look ata John he was falling. She moved over to where he'd landed, just now crying as she let everything sink in. She tried to arrange him some from where he'd fallen, wondered if it'd take as long for him to wake up now as it had before. The room felt small around her, and she couldn't help but think of it as him running away. Rose knew, deep down, that he'd have to come back eventually, but she didn't think it right that today she didn't seem able to say goodbye to anyone. She moved over to the empty chair and sat, staring down at her feet. She couldn't help but think that she had ultimately failed.

It didn't take very long for John - no, the Doctor, this time - to stir, shifting to sit up on his elbow and rubbing his temple with his free hand. "--it's that one right... oh." He had started in the middle of a sentence, and it took him a minute to realize that he wasn't wherever he might have thought, blinking a couple of times as he let things come back to him. "..it's early," he remarked, looking up at Rose briefly. "Rose?"

She turned to him, still crying, slightly shocked that he was already awake again. "Doctor?" Rose's voice was almost hopeful, and she felt a need to keep him from turning around. Then for a minute at least she wouldn't have failed so completely.

He was surprised to see that she was crying - and that he was in the TARDIS. Sitting up, he kept his gaze on her for the moment. "..it's me." He smiled a little, crookedly. "You don't have to look so sad to see me." It was a light joke, a rather bad one at that.

"It's not..." She couldn't help staring over his shoulder for a moment, before turning back to him. Rose stood, and started towards him. "It went wrong. Everything." She whispered in confession.

He got to his feet, preparing mentally for the worst. It would take time for his memory of the last three months to return. "..what happened?" He asked. Serious, this time, without the smile.

She told him, almost babbling, everything that'd happened since the second time he, no, John, had gotten the flowers. When she got the events of the day she was almost whispering.

The Doctor listened quietly, and when she had finished, he nodded, stepping forward to put his arms around her. Comfort. "We'll fix it. It's not all wrong." He meant that. He wouldn't promise to stop the Family, but... there were things he could do yet. That he could promise.

She let him, burying her head in his shoulder. Part of her couldn't help but wonder how he planned to fix Jack, but she just stood there. Rose realized all at once how much she'd missed him, and squeezed tighter. She couldn't help but mutter a small 'Thank you' meant for John.

He smiled gently, holding her for as long as she wanted him to - as long as she let him. He was quiet for some minutes, closing his eyes. He could feel the break between his last conscious state and the present, like a hole in himself. "Sorry I was gone so long."

"Sorry you had to come back to this mess." Rose told him in response. After what felt like ages she pulled back slowly. As she did she caught a glance of the cot, and couldn't help but feel some guilt come back.

"Well, I'm good at cleaning up messes, right?" He smiled a bit. "Chin up. We'll figure it out." He bent to retrieve the fob watch from the floor, setting it down on the TARDIS console.

"What about Jack?" She couldn't hold the question back any longer. Rose was normally pretty sure that you couldn't fix dead. She pulled the screwdriver out of her pocket and held it out to him dutifully.

He took the sonic screwdriver back with a nod, turning to look at Jack's... body. "Well. You can't die twice, so..." He frowned slightly. "..but he ought to be conscious by now. How long has it been since he died?"

Rose blanked for a moment, wanting to ask him what he meant by 'should be conscious by now', but instead looking at her watch. "We got there around...an hour ago?" She offered, the time hadn't been her biggest concern.

"An hour... he should definitely be conscious. I can't be wrong about this," he seemed slightly cross with himself, holding the sonic screwdriver out towards Jack and pressing the button several times.

Rose's bafflement persisted, but she moved to watch him blink the sonic screwdriver at Jack. She opened her mouth to tell him again, or maybe ask if he'd heard her, but as she did there was a great inhalation of air, and she took a step back.

"There we go!" The Doctor grinned, putting the sonic screwdriver back in his pocket. "Welcome back!" He was addressing Jack, of course, as if this development were utterly normal.

Rose was gaping, and while she realized that she did nothing to stop the fact. A moment later Jack's eyes were open and he was sitting up. "Doctor? Isn't it a bit early still, did something happen?" As the acted normal as anything Rose closed her mouth, clicking her teeth together, took a step forward and proceeded to slap Jack before pivoting and walking away. They'd known, and neither had told her. She was to busy being angry at him right now to be relieved he was alive. It was now Jack's turn to be confused.

"No, just... why'd she hit you?" He sounded a bit confused. Some things did tend to just fly right over his head. He turned to see where she'd gone, but evidently decided he trusted her not to wreck anything, because he stayed put. "Funny thing, being immortal, isn't it?"

"No clue..." Jack admitted, looking after her himself. He held a hand to his cheek. "I don't think I've had a chance to do anything." He thought for a moment. "I mean, she's the one that suggested the plan for the-" There were suddenly a pair of eyes glaring at him from accross the room.

"Plan for what?" The Doctor looked confused again, and a mite bit pathetic at it, but that was probably on purpose. "I hate these becoming-me-again things. I can never remember anything properly!" He didn't seem to notice the eyes glaring at Jack.

"For rescuing John." Jack told him, once Rose saw fit to stop glaring at him. "Though judging from the look she just gave me, that's probably not half of it." He paused for a moment more as he realized something. "You didn't mention the immortal thing to Rose, did you?"

A pause, and he looked down a bit embarrassedly. "Well... not exactly. Never had the time... well, alright, no, I didn't." He sighed. "Didn't know you were gonna go and die again, or try to."

"I think that's a mystery solved then." He looked over towards where Rose was standing, a bit guiltily. "Didn't really try, it was the quickest solution I could think of."

"To.. to die, and feed those things? Thought you people would be smarter," he chided, then paused and rethought that. "Well, I guess under the circumstances... the only idea you could come up with was dying?" Even knowing Jack was immortal and all of that, it was a fairly outlandish idea. Also, he really didn't like the idea of people he liked going off and dying to save him.

"I know it was stupid, alright? Would you have prefered that I got the watch off Rose and popped in and handed it to John then asked for the time? She'd have come up too." Jack spread his arms. "I couldn't exactly go in blasting, thanks to some banana trees. And while we're talking about my mistakes, what the hell did you think you were doing having Rose press the button?"

The Doctor stared, and when he got done doing that he stared a little more, trying to find a reply that didn't sound like 'because she was there'. Which had been, really, all the thought that had gone into it. "...she was closer," he admitted, frowning before adding, "Was it very bad?" He never did get much memory of that bit.

"Was it?-" His mind went back to it, just for a moment, before he'd managed to push the image back out of his head. "You..." He couldn't think of a suitable description for it. The look on his face was all he really had to convey it. "You're not doing it again, as long as I'm around to stop you." Jack said finally.

He nodded, seeing in Jack's expression what he had been afraid of. He never knew, not really, what happened during the transference. It hurt, but then he blacked out - human pain receptors weren't meant to withstand a massive restructuring of the cells of the body, after all, and neither really were a Time Lord's. When he'd thought it through, he looked at the floor, the grating underneath them. "I'm sorry."

"She's the one that has to remember she did it." Jack told him simply. It didn't help much to think that if he'd done three months ago what he'd done today, it would've saved alot of hassle for everyone. He grabbed the Time Lord's arm and grinned at him instead. "Welcome back, Doctor."

A pause, and he smiled slightly, though he was still a bit troubled. He made a mental note to apologize to Rose later, let her know that... what? He hadn't meant it? But he had. He had just been... stupid about it. Not that he would use that word, because he was not stupid, but. Anyway.

"I'm glad to be," he said, nodding. "Little bit weird, not... existing, you know. Just for a little while, but still weird."

At around this point Rose made her way back over to the two of them, but didn't say anything. "I guess it would be." Jack said, after some thought. Just another reason not to do that again, right Rose?" He asked, noticing her standing there. She seemed a bit startled when he spoke to her, but then smiled. "Yeah."

The Doctor looked at Rose, then away briefly as he tried to configure the words in his head. When he addressed her again, it was a touch haltingly. "I'm sorry. For.. scaring you. Three months back, or however long it's been." He meant it.

The apology surprised her, and she glanced at Jack suspiciously out of the corner of her eye. "It's..." She started to tell him that it was okay, but a thought crossed her mind, and her face softened as she asked. "Do you...remember it?"

"Not really. Not.. very much." He shook his head, adding, "Once the human pain receptors and nerves kick in, I just black out - brain can't handle all that at once. So I only.. remember up to that point." He was rambling again, a bit. More to put her at ease than anything.

Rose's relief was obvious, and the familiar rambling just made her smile. "I'm glad. I'd have hated for you to have to remember it." She told him honestly, and tried to slip a hand into his.

He let her, holding her hand, squeezing it for a second as reassurance. "Well, I don't, so rest assured." He smiled brightly. "Now. Are you alright? I'm checking again because it's been such a long time since I've seen you. Not for me, but for you, anyway. I sort of slept through it.."

"Yeah, I'm fine. Bored if anything." That fact more then anything told her that she wouldn'tve been happy with a normal life. She smiled at him again as she realized something. "Mum'll be mad you're back early." Rose teased him.

"Oh, no. I bet she liked it when we couldn't go off anywhere, didn't she?" He raised an eyebrow, but he seemed.. happy. Felt happy, for that matter. They weren't running, and everything had turned out more or less okay. "Now she's going to try and kill me or something, for coming back early. I'm not drinking her tea this time."

"I bet she'll be glad to have her couch back." Jack commented, "Come to think of it she actually didn't spend that much time at home." Rose thought about it, then nodded. "You're right actually. Wonder if she's planning something." After a few moments an idea hit her. "I bet she'll try to hide the Tardis somewhere, more discreet then poisoned tea."

"Hide the TARDIS?" He asked, looking perplexed. "What's she going to do, put a bedsheet over it? It's not exactly east to move, I mean maybe if you had a crane, but.. your mum hasn't got a crane, does she?"

Rose looked at the Tardis ceiling thoughtfully, going over the people her mum had dated. "There was this bloke who rented heavy equipment. She told me she was with him for a bit over that year." She told him finally.

"Oh, no. She is not kidnapping the TARDIS." He seemed genuinely concerned about this possibility, though it was possible he was acting. Not out of the realm of possibility, anyway. "This is.. this is the TARDIS. She can't just take it and cart it off somewhere while we're all over for tea."

"I wouldn't underestimate her if I were you." Rose warned, pointing a finger at him in jest. Suddenly her grin turned sly. "Just in case, we should stop at the flat for a mo' so I can gather my things, and then we can be off."

The Doctor looked at the TARDIS controls and made a sort of noncomittal sound. "I... s'pose we might as well. But if your mother steals my TARDIS, that's war," he warned jokingly.

"You two stand guard then. Really just two things I've got to grab." Rose told them, and headed in the direction of the door. It didn't even occur to her to jokingly warn them not to leave without her.

"Right.. hurry up, and then.. back on the way." He grinned, going to the TARDIS's controls and lightly touching the console. Bits lit up when he touched them, as if welcoming him home.

Rose nodded, running out the door. Jack stood and stretched. He seemed as if he was unsure of whether of not to bring something up.

"..there we go." The Doctor was muttering to the TARDIS under his breath, preoccupied momentarily with greeting her after nearly three months away. When he came back to himself, he looked up again. "..so. Any ideas?" He asked Jack, unaware of any inner debates.

That was answer enough to his internal debate. He thought for a moment, and then grinned. "I don't think most of the places I've been are exactly tourist material, and the ones that were..." He let his sentence trail off and winked.

The Doctor grinned. "Point taken! Could always just let the TARDIS decide.." Pause. "On second thought. Do we want to stay on Earth, or..?" He was thinking out loud, now.

Before Jack had a chance to answer the door to the Tardis flew open and Rose was standing there. Her grin was half forced, and while over one shoulder was her usual bag of clothes, she was holding a book to her chest.

He blinked, caught by surprise with the sudden entrance - that really hadn't taken long. "Welcome back. All set?" If something was wrong, she'd say so, he hoped.

"Yup. Got everything." She told him, closing the door behind her before moving back over to the two of them. Rose wasn't willing to admit that she'd been packed for almost a week already. She rubbed her fingers over the book for a minute, before holding it gently out to the Doctor. "He said to give this to you." Her voice was soft.

The Doctor frowned slightly, perplexed, and took the book, looking at it as if it were something entirely foreign to him - which it was, actually. "..who did?"

"John. A couple weeks back." 'When I told him he's stop existing.' But she didn't tell him that part. She'd manage to leave out the parts where she'd told him things she shouldn't have in the earlier explanation, and she realized now that wouldn't quite work.

"..he told you to give this to me?" He opened the journal carefully, almost like he was afraid of what was inside, or maybe just cautious. "How did he know I even existed?" It waseasier to talk like this John Smith was someone else utterly.

Rose turned away from him guiltily. She tried a few times to explain, but never quite got as far as the first word. Jack saved her. "She had trouble lieing to him for all that time. Rose isn't that kind of person."

He had to think about that carefully before choosing how to respond, staring at the first page and not quite wanting to turn the page. "..I see. So he learned about me and left me this.." He paused and added, "I'll remember eventually, I'm sure, but.. sometimes it takes a while.." Finally he turned the page, glancing at it, the handwriting not-quite-his, sketches.

"That's all things he remembered though. His dreams." Rose told him. She wasn't quite sure she was in a hurry for him to remember everything. "I didn't tell him about anything that had happened. It's all stuff that got left behind in his head."

"Oh." A beat. "Oh. That's... oh." He was mulling over it in his head, examining the page of the journal he'd opened to. "...that's not supposed to happen. That's... really not supposed to happen."

"Did I do something wrong?" Rose couldn't help but ask. She wasn't sure exactly how one could press a button incorrectly but...

"..no, it's not you. The system must be.. but it can't be flawed because it's always worked before. Unless I just don't remember remembering things. That's a problem. Well, not.. immediately, my head's not going to explode, but if I have to do this again.." He was thinking quickly, looking up to the machine that he'd used to do that in the first place, now hoisted up by the ceiling, as it was when not in use. "..I'll have to have a look at that. Bizarre! I'm not supposed to have a single Time Lord memory left! But look at this, and it's bits and pieces of my life right here."

"Well." Jack said quickly, before the Doctor had a chance to get started again. "There's not going to be a next time, so you don't have to worry about that. To your earlier question though..." He grinned a bit at the idea he'd had. "How about a cruise?"

The Doctor blinked, taken rather abruptly out of his tirade on the finer points of transmutational disguise mechanisms. "..a cruise?" Pause. "A cruise! Well, I think I could come up with something.. hm, hm. Good ship for a cruise... got it!" He grinned. "Think I know just the one. We could use a bit of time off, I think, maybe? Well, you two, anyway. I didn't do anything."

"I didn't exactly do much either." Rose admitted. "Spent a bit of time carrying bodies around, and not much else. A cruise sounds great though!" She told him with a grin.

"Well, you know. Stressful work, carting around unconscious people... cruise it is, then." He went to the TARDIS controls, setting things up. Buttons, levers - he grinned like a madman as he went through them, setting their course and getting them on their way.

It was very, very, very good to be home.


	3. Titanic

The sparks the TARDIS's controls gave off as it keyed into its destination didn't bother him. Well, they didn't bother him enough to stop, anyway. He knew he'd have to have a look about later, but for now everything seemed just fine. The whole ship shook as it found a foothold in the destination reality, and then stopped.

The Doctor patted the control console, smiling fondly at the machinery. "Good work. Right where we ought to be." He turned to look at his companions, grinning a bit madly. "1910, just off the coast of Ireland. Maybe a bit farther out than that, now... shall we?"

He gestured to the doors, going to grab his coat and shrug it on, then paused and considered. "...you two might want to change." After all, his suit was pretty much good for anything after 1800, but t-shirts and jeans wouldn't be around for at least another couple of centuries.

Jack was already heading towards the door that would eventually lead to the wardrobe once he'd gotten a time period. It went against instincts he'd gotten in the Time Agency to stroll out into another time with clothes that wouldn't exist for awhile.

Rose however, moved instead to the main door. "I'm making sure." She told the Doctor, pointing a finger at him while she made her way. A minute later she'd opened the door enough to peak out, and then grinned. "Alright then, it's not Cardiff." She teased before following where Jack had gone. "Even seems to be floating."

"Well, that's a relief. I was worried we'd end up in Scotland or something..." He grinned and leaned against the rail by the door while he waited for them to come back from changing clothes.

A few moments later there's a slight commotion from the direction of the wardrobe. A minute or two later Jack enters the console room in period attire, with a very amused look on his face.

"All right in there?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow, looking up from his very serious contemplation of the TARDIS's doors.

"Yeah. You might want to add 'knocking' to your next slideshow." It wasn't as if Jack hadn't left the door unlocked, but still. He was still rather amused by the turn of events. More so when, soon after Rose came out suitably dressed, she was looking pointedly not at him.

"...oh." He hadn't even thought of that, sending both of them to change at the same time. "Well, let's go, then. Allons-y, and all that." He smiled brightly, eager to get past the awkwardness and going to the doors, pushing them open to reveal...

"We're in a closet. I think we're in somebody's closet."

"I didn't mention that?" Rose asked as she followed him. "Least we didn't land in the middle of the dining room or something." She offered up. "She does have a point." Jack offered.

"Fair enough." He stepped out of the TARDIS, pushing open the closet doors as he did. "Unoccupied, from the looks... second class, definitely not steerage. Not bad." He turned to grin at the others. "Welcome to the RMS Lusitania."

Well, he was pretty sure that was where they were.

Rose wandered into the room to look around. "Well, it's got big enough closet-space." She noted, jokingly. Jack followed after her shortly, his attention on the bed. He looked at the design embroidered on a corner of the sheet and then turned around.

The Doctor was poking about a bit, opening drawers and the wardrobe, making sure that the room wasn't being occupied by anyone else. "..RMS Lusitania, out of Liverpool, owned by the Cunard Line... you asked for a cruise, right?" he was saying, smiling. It seemed to him they'd found the right destination this time.

"I think I'd like to rebook my travel plans in that case." Jack told him, jerking his head towards the logo on the sheets. "The blankets aren't quite agreeing with you." He wasn't smiling. Rose moved over, glancing down at the name and gaping.

He glanced over at the logo, eyes widening slightly when he saw the distinctive monogram. "...RMS Titanic," he muttered, his voice losing the jovial tone from before. "Well... that wasn't in the brochure."

"So, the actual Titanic." Gears were turning in Rose's head. She looked around the room with a newfound interest. A cruise ship was one thing, the Titanic itself was something else entirely.

"Not 1910, then. 1912... sank on its maiden voyage. Five days after it left Southampton harbor." He was frowning, considering. "We should leave," he said finally.

"But..." Rose objected, turning to look at him. "We're already here, aren't we? Can't we just take a look around, I mean, the Titanic." She thought hard for an appropriate arguement. "We've got the TARDIS, so we can leave any time, and you know whereever we end up something's gonna happen, so isn't it best to know what's gonna go wrong?"

"And if we get involved in events, we're going to be stuck here when it happens," he said, crossing his arms over his chest and casting another look about the room.

"We won't get involved." Rose promised. "I just want to look." Jack was standing to the side, leaning against the wall. This would be an argument to see.

"But if we do.. and we have sort of a track record of it, don't know if you've noticed.. then we're stuck." He paused, looking at her. "Rose, this ship sinks. And it takes more than half the people on it with it."

She knew that, on both counts. She'd seen the movie, and it wasn't exactly 'little known'. "But that just means it's the only chance we've got to see it." She was struck with a sudden, probably futile excuse. "What if we landed here for a reason? I mean, if it just went a bit off, we'd be in the ocean or something, right?"

A pause. He considered that, running a hand idly over the dresser, glancing at the reflection of his hand on the mirror mounted on the wall behind it. "TARDIS won't bring us somewhere we can't survive. She's smarter than that." A pause. "Dunno why this, though. Why here..?" She'd gotten him thinking.

She grinned triumphantly when she was sure he couldn't see her. "We should look around, make sure there's nothing funny going on." Rose said persuasively. "I mean, we even managed to land in an extra room..." Seeing that things seemed decided, Jack checked his wrist computer. "April 13th. We've got around 30 hours." He told them.

"..thirty hours," the Doctor repeated, pondering over the information. He looked up at Rose and Jack, still frowning. "If we get tied to events here, I am locking you both deep in the TARDIS and you are never going out again." Not a very plausible threat, but it was the best he could do on short notice.

"Is that a promise?" Jack asked him, winking. It wasn't his best comeback, but one again, short notice. To be honest he'd rather pick a spot other then the Titanic himself. He was somewhat, but not quite sure he might be running around somewhere himself, he couldn't recall if he'd run that con or not.

The Doctor sighed, shaking his head. "Impossible. Both of you." He removed his hand from the dresser, looking at the door. "..guess we ought to have a quick look around. Quick, mind, because I don't want to get stuck here." He was concerned, half by the inevitably sinking ship, and half by the distant possibility of running into himself.

"If we split up, we can look faster." Jack suggested. "I'll keep an eye on Rose, and make sure she doesn't get involved in anything. You're better at finding problems, and I'm better at discretion. You'll be able to cover more ground alone." He pointed out. Rose opened her mouth to argue.

He glanced at Rose, then looked back at Jack. "Alright. Keep out of trouble, if you find it. If anybody asks, you're second-class passengers going to New York for business, or something." He went to the door, pausing briefly. "Be careful. Both of you. We can meet back here in two hours?"

"Two hours." Rose was quick to agree, despite her lack of a watch. There was really just one thing she wanted to do onboard, it would be easy enough to find. "What do we do if one of us doesn't show up?" Jack asked.

"We find them," the Doctor replied, standing by the door but not quick to leave. "At all costs." Because that was how they had to do it. He wasn't going to lose anyone to some shipwreck.

Jack nodded. He'd mean more along the lines of how long should they wait, but part of him realized that more or less late would be late. "We'll check the front of the ship." Rose offered quickly.

"..alright. I'll take a look around the other decks." He paused, and smiled a little. "You should have a look at the staircase in the first class. It's supposed to be pretty historic." Forcing himself to cheer about this.

"Right." Rose said, smiling back as she moved towards the door herself. She wasn't quite sure what there was to be worried about. "I've checked the floor plans out a few times, once we've scoped the place I'll make sure she sees the sights." Jack told him, following behind her.

"Right. And you behave," he told Jack with a bit of a smirk, turning to touch Rose's arm lightly, telling her, "Be careful, right?"

"Of course. You too." She told him, continuing as an afterthought. She wasn't sure of what, she imagined it would be a bit hard to manage being 28 hours later.

"I'll try." He smiled, pulling the door open and walking out to the hallway, looking both ways before he stepped out, giving a small wave to the two before going in the direction he'd deemed 'aft'.

They waved as well, before going in the opposite direction. Before they turned a corner and disapeared, there was chattering between the two, Rose asking Jack why exactly he'd scoped out the Titanic's floor plans, and a response that would probably be overlong.

The Doctor ended up, after a few short hallways, at a staircase leading up to the deck. He climbed it quickly, dodging out of the way of a crew member who didn't question him. Act like you belong and nobody will know different, he thought. It came in handy.

Once on the deck, he stepped to the rail to look out at the ocean. It had been a while since he'd last ended up on a boat.

A few feet along the railing, towards the front there was a woman leaning out over the railing, her head turned in the direction the ship was going. There was something of an impatience to her, for all she seemed as a first class passenger.

He looked down at the water for a couple of moments before he noticing the woman, looking over. He smiled pleasantly. "You'll want to be careful or you might fall off," he advised.

She turned to look at him, lpulling back a bit from the rail. "Don't worry." She told him regally. "I've no intention of going for a swim today, and it would be quite a height to dive from besides."

"It would. What.. sixty feet, guessing?" He peered over the edge, one hand on the rail. He didn't want to go for a swim, either. "Cold water in the Atlantic, this time of year." It was almost a question. Starting conversation was always good.

"So the pamphlets said." She made a show of regarding him carefully, trying to determine his class. It was a bit obvious of a mannerism. She was standing straight now, careful now that attention was on her.

He was leaning on the railing, looking at her. "Did they? I wasn't paying much attention. Guess I should have." He grinned. She was definitely first-class - way too proper-seeming for second, definitely not third. It didn't change how he acted to her, though.

She couldn't quite place him, and so stayed careful. "I suppose so. It is always best to be informed on a ship one is to be a passenger on."

"Well, I managed to figure out what ship it is, so I can't be doing too badly.." He glanced out at the horizon line. "I'm not much of a nautical expert. Much better when I'm on the ground." He had been going to say he was better with aerial, but then remembered that aeroplanes hadn't been invented quite yet.

She looked at him oddly after his comment. "That is hardly an impressive feat. The ship is covered with its name. It is, rather more suspicious that you could find yourself on board the Titanic without knowing her name." Her voice was challenging.

"I knew the name when I got on board!" He replied, as if that were obvious. He was still smiling, which put off his sharper tone a bit. "I'm not that bad. I mean, I can be, but I usually don't run onto ships without knowing what they are... I was being facetious."

"Is that so?" Her voice was a bit put off by his sharper tone. "If that is the case, may I ask what brings you aboard the Titanic, the unsinkable?" There was the barest of a flicker on her face as she said the last word.

If he had any reaction to the word 'unsinkable', he concealed it, looking back at her. "..traveling," he said finally, nodding. "It's what I do; I travel. Yourself?"

"You could go as far as to say our reasons are similar." She told him primly. She paused for a few moments before continuing, looking him over. Finally she extended a hand. "Celestine Smith."

"Just traveling, then?" He grinned, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips for a kiss - maybe a little old-fashioned, but it seemed more appropriate than a handshake. He paused when he heard the name, though. "..Smith, really?" That was an awfully familiar name.

She looked hard at him for a moment at his response, taking back her hand in a practiced movement. "Yes. Are you calling me a liar, Mister...?" Her voice was just short of being offended.

"No, it's just, ah..." He struggled for an answer and wound up with, "Nevermind." He had to think what to introduce himself with, though. Using 'John Smith' didn't feel right. Not now. "..I'm the Doctor."

"Well, 'The' I believe you should find a name of your own before you question others'." Her tone was matter of fact, save for the bit of skepticism she infused into the word 'The'.

He blinked, looking surprised. "M-my name is not The. I'm the Doctor. It's... it's a title, not really like a name.."

"If that is the case, then you will have to be more mindful of your introductions in future cases, The Doctor. It is a personal habit of mine to call individuals by the first name by which they have introduced themselves to me." Celestine told him simply.

He gaped, staring at her for a long moment before he could gather words. It was not often that he was left speechless. "...right, then. So, you're gonna keep calling me 'The', aren't you?" He sounded vaguely dispairing.

She considered this for a moment before replying. "Well, I certainly do not go around calling individuals 'Doctor' unless I have seen a degree that proves their lawful acquisition of that status."

The Doctor smiled at that. "Well! I think I may have.." He looked down as he reached in his pocket for the psychic paper, unfolding it and holding it out to her. Willing it to be a doctorate, naturally.

She looked at it briefly, before meeting his eyes with something of a wicked smile. "I am of the belief, The, that degrees tend to be a bit... larger then that." Still looking into his eyes, she continued confidently. "Also, in my experience, they normally have some sort of writing on them."

He stared. He couldn't help it - just stared, for a very long moment, before pulling back his hand and staring at the psychic paper almost accusingly. "But.. how did you... how'd you do that?"

When she answered him, she did so as if she was speaking to a child. "First, I made use of my eyes to look at the paper, then my brain registered the image. Finally, my mouth, tongue and vocal chords were exhibited in such a way that I could communicate my discoveries to you, referenced upon basic knowledge." She nodded curtly to him once she finished speaking. "Now, if further lessons are not needed, I shall take my leave. Perhaps, the next time we come accross each other you will even have a name." She turned and started to walk away.

The Doctor looked back at her briefly, practically in shock. "..I'll do my best," he muttered by way of response, shocking the psychic paper back in his pocket. There was something very wrong with that woman. How the hell had she seen through the psychic paper?!

A few minutes after Celestine's sudden departure, the Doctor was noticed by two people near the front of the boat. Rose was the first one to head towards him, though Jack stayed close to her heals. She'd gotten her moment at the 'King of the World' scene, and was thus calling the trip a success.

The Doctor was still leaning on the railing, thinking through his confusion - he didn't notice Rose. He was rather caught up in trying to figure out who that woman was.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Doctor didn't seem to be paying much attention, Rose acted quickly, covering his eyes with her hands from behind. A moment later she realized that might not have been a very good idea, seeing the usual things they came accross.

He froze up when his vision went out, and it took him a minute to realize that someone's hands were blocking his vision. "Who's there?" He asked, a little worried. Not... overly concerned; most nasty things didn't bother with blinding him.

Rose pulled her hands back. "Just me." She told him, moving so as to lean her back against the railing and look at him. "For being in a hurry to be off, you don't look like you're searching much. For starters you'd try not looking away from what you're searching." She was teasing him.

He looked back at her, and was surprised into a smile. "Yeah, well... I was searching the ocean. You know, could be giant squids, or something. Like in those old sketches, here be monsters?" The joke helped him recover a bit from his confusion. He didn't much like being confused.

"Isn't it 'here be dragons', on the bits of maps that the cartographers haven't the foggiest?" Jack interjected. "I don't see what a giant squid could do that isn't going to happen already." Rose said.

"Sometimes it was here be monsters... I think. Never was much at cartography." He shrugged. "Still, giant squids. Not the most fun... and they don't tend to take 'no' for an answer."

"Any of them hanging about then?" Rose asked, leaning backwards. "Nothing really up here, bow of the ship's clear." She informed him. First place they'd checked, once she'd convinced Jack they should start all the way to the front. He'd guessed her intentions though.

"That's good. Have fun?" He could wait to tell them about the perplexing woman he'd met. Ostensibly human, but she had been so peculiar.

Rose played innocent. "What do you mean, I didn't know keeping an eye out for things that were out of place was supposed to be fun." She'd have whistled if she could.

"You look like you had fun," he said, almost accusingly, with a smile, pointing at her - almost teasingly.

"Maybe a bit." She admitted, smiling at him. "Come accross anything beside squid Doctor?" Jack broke in.

"Didn't even find a squid," he replied, almost pouting, before adding, "I did meet one... very confusing woman." He pulled a face at that. "Not used to that."

Jack grinned at his response. "Oh. Did you now?" He whispered something into Rose's ear and her expression went from curious to amused.

He frowned at Jack, but didn't seem too serious about it. "She saw through the psychic paper. That's just.. not supposed to happen!" He was definitely confused by that. He decided not to tell them about Celestine's calling him 'The' - mostly because he knew that they would likely adopt it.

Jack shrugged a bit, thinking. "All it takes is a low level of psy energy to see through it. I doubt she had any training in that sense, but it's not impossible. If that's the only thing that was odd about her, it's not much to go on." He concluded.

"No, more than that... she confused me. That... shouldn't happen. Normal people don't confuse me." That was a bit of a stretch, but nobody had ever accused him of being self-depreciating.

"She confused you..." Jack dead panned, turning to Rose with a raised eyebrow. "Alright then, is there something inparticular you'd like to accuse her of being? Besides psychic and confusing. She is a woman."

"Sex aside, it's unusual for a human to be able to see through the psychic paper," he mused, frowning at the railing and the ocean below. "I don't know what she is, but... she was strange."

"Well then, I can only assume you found out what room she's staying in, so that you can keep track of her?" Jack asked.

"Didn't have a chance," he replied, shrugging. "She sort of.. blind-sided me and walked away." That was a bit embarrassing, wasn't it?

Jack moved to the other side of Doctor, and leaned on the railing. "I'll assume you managed to at least get her name? I might be able to pull up a passenger list and figure out where she's staying."

"Celestine Smith," he replied, nodding. "That's what she said her name was. Er, I'm fairly sure she's in first class, though. Certainly didn't look the part for steerage."

"Right." He leaned over, pulling back a sleeve and trying to disguise what he was doing on his wrist. A minute later he shook his head. "No luck, no 'c smith's on board. I might be willing to start to believe you about her now."

"Hm. I knew there was something about her! Now..." Pause. "I'll have to speak to her again, won't I?" He didn't sound as happy about that as he might have. She was intriguing, but also confusing.

"Someone will. You're the one who's talked to her already. You'll have to at least point her out to one of us." Jack told him, crossing his arms.

"Yeah, I know, but... she confuses me!" He was harping on it because it was so weird to him. "And she just seems very.. very odd. Like she knows something. Or a great many things.."

"Don't first-class types normally act like they know everything?" Rose asked him, going on what she'd seen (mostly) in movies. It was certainly different to see the Doctor this confused, or worried about being confused, or whatever.

"Sort of... not usually quite this much. It's just.. something about her. I'm not sure what." He thought there was something weirdly familiar about her, but he could have been making it up.

"Well..." Jack checked the time. "I think it's around the time dinner would be served. If she is first class, or at least pretending to be, chances are we could catch her in the dining room."

"Probably.. suppose this means we have to pretend to be first class." He raised an eyebrow at that, as if to ask if they could. Teasing a bit. "Think they'll let us in?"

"It's the same game everywhere. Act like you belong. In this case, if anyone tried to tell you otherwise, look at them like they're lower then the dirt, beneath the ocean, beneath your feet." Jack was only partially joking. Rose shrugged slightly. "You need to talk to her again, right? Not much other choice."

"That'll probably work. I'm not that bad at playing holier-than-thou." Playing? He grinned. "At least I'll be able to get some clues. Maybe our monster is in the first class."

"And if they're serving calamari, then we know it's safe to go." Jack said with a smirk. People on the deck were beginning to mill around.

"Right. Though now I'm trying to imagine these people weilding spears.. sort of thirteenth-century woodcarving, that." He looked around briefly, at the other people.

He looked over at the crowds. "I think this probably means it's feeding time." Jack decided. Rose agreed with him, adding. "Time to go find your mystery woman."

"So it is." He smiled thinly. "Are you two coming along?"

They exchanged glances. "We'll keep an eye on you from afar." Rose suggested, "Wouldn't want to scare her off, and waste time trying to find her again. But if anything does happen we're nearby."

"Alright." He nodded. "Don't let her eat me if she turns out hostile. I don't taste very good."

"I imagine there'll be plenty else for her to eat there." Rose said pointedly. Jack opened his mouth to say something.

"One can hope." He sort of cut Jack off there, because he was reasonably sure what he said was going to be lewd.

Jack let him, though he'd been asking for it. "We'll walk you as far as the door, then come in a minute or two after you. Try to chat her up a bit before you two do anything else to give us time to get there."

A nod. "Okay. Let's see who this woman is, then." He grinned briefly, turning to lead the way to the dining hall. Once they'd gotten there, he stepped inside, looking for Celestine. The only person there he would know, so it wasn't that hard.

She was standing off to the side, near a small group of people. Close enough that if someone saw her they'd think she was among the people there, but far enough to be ignored by the group itself. It proved a rather useful pretense to be able to stand there and think.

He approached cautiously, smiling when he reached her. "We meet again," he told her, brightly. He was glad she was there, actually. He wanted to figure her out.

She considered him once again, wondering why he had sought her out. "The." She nodded in greeting. "I am somewhat surprised to see you again so soon. One would almost think they were being followed."

"Well, you managed to perplex me the first time we met," he replied with a smile. "I thought we might talk more... also, I don't know anyone else here."

"I suppose it is very rare for you to find someone who knows the difference between a blank piece of paper and a degree." She told him, but her tone might have been a little lighter then earlier. "I have no prior engagements for the meal, so I do not believe there is a problem."

He tried to ignore the dig about the psychic paper, since he couldn't exactly explain it to her without revealing that he wasn't just your average English traveler on the ship. "Well, that's good. Wouldn't want to encounter any problems." Really wouldn't.

"Keeping in mind that it is rude to ask one questions that you yourself would not answer, what is it you wish to talk about?" Celeste's smile was sly, but her voice the same as ever.

He raised an eyebrow slightly at that, smiling a bit as he considered the question. "Oh, you know.. anything's fine. The ship, ourselves... as long as it's not the weather."

"You mentioned that you know no one else here. Are you traveling alone?" There was thought behind the question, and she was fairly sure it would be returned to her. It was a rather odd way to go about things, asking the questions you are willing to answer.

"I am - I'm meeting my friends in America." That was a blatant lie, but he wasn't so bad at it. "And you?" He was curious about the questions, but he was more than willing to answer.

"I always travel alone." She gave her answer in passing, and for a moment her attention was on two figures accross the room behind her. "But in your case, I believe there are a few individuals aboard with their eye on you."

He looked back, ostensibly to confirm what she was saying, then looked back at her. "I met them downstairs," he explained with a smile. He'd admit he was lying if she figured him out, but he preferred not to have to.

"In that case, the next time you talk to them you should inform your acquaintances that it is considered rude to stare." Celeste told him evenly. "It is a simple matter of etiquette."

"I'll do that. You're very conscious of etiquette, aren't you, Miss Smith?" He asked as innocently as he could, keeping his own voice even.

"It is to be expected on such vessels as this one. Though it would not be entirely untrue to suggest that in less expectant climates that one might not worry as much over the occaisonal...breach." There is a tinge of a smile at the last word.

He raised an eyebrow at that, thinking fast to deduce a sort of hypothesis based on her word choice. Time to test it. "..well, in a place like this, it's not really possible to avoid the kinds of obstacles that might cause one to break the rules, is it?"

She smiled politely. "There is a way around any obstacle. The important thing is knowing that the obstacle is there to avoid." His question intrigues her though, and she thinks of a phrase that would not have much meaning now. "After all, in the end, knowing is half the battle, after all."

He very nearly smiled. So she wasn't just a prissy rich girl; she was something else entirely. "And the other half is acting. But sometimes obstacles can't be avoided - they merely have to be faced. For best or worst."

"And you, The Doctor." She said, with equal if not greater importance on the word 'The'. "Where will next week take you? If there is an obstacle in one's path, common sense says to avoid it. It is a considerably more intelligent, and endlessly easier reasoning then to remove it."

If he hadn't been so engaged in the conversation, he would have winced at the way she placed emphasis on 'The'. "Oh, I intend to avoid the obstacles in my way altogether. I'm not very good at dealing with clashes. It's too bad that not everyone can avoid them."

"There is an obstacle that must be avoided, there is no choice. You speak of avoiding obstacles most flippantly, then you would leave others to obstacles that they would not know?" Her voice is calm, but something flashes in her eyes.

He nodded. "I can't pretend to change anyone else's fate. They have obstacles they must face." He put a slight emphasis on the word 'must'.

"We all must face our obstacles once we are past them." She says as she looks him in the eye. Something to the side catches her attention though, and she turns. "My apologies for the abrupt behavior but there is someone with whom I must speak."

"Really?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "And who is that, if you don't mind my asking?" Calculating, now. He was thinking hard about what this meant.

"Our good Captain. I came accross something most strange in the closet of the room in which I have been staying. While I am traveling without luggage it does not seem an excuse to use my quarters for storage. I can only assume that you will come accross me again. It is a big ship, but I doubt, big enough." Celeste gave him a slight curtsy, before starting to move away.

"I'm sure." Now he was thinking very quickly. He hoped desperately that the thing she was referring to wasn't the TARDIS. Standing, he made his way to the door, giving a brief nod to Rose and Jack to follow him out.

They did so, Jack keeping an eye on where she moved to while he followed Rose, who was following the Doctor out of the room. They made polite chatter and moved slowly.

The Doctor sighed once he was outside, looking honestly rather frustrated - it was the first time in the last several minutes that he'd been able to actually show any sort of expression at all, though. "..that was exhausting," he said finally, and he sounded almost giddy. "Absolutely exhausting. I haven't had a verbal sparring like that in... a long, long time."

"Did you manage to find anything out? Besides that there's someone you can have a conversation with on board?" Rose asked him, then thought of something and hesitated for a moment before continuing. "You looked back, early on, did we do something?"

"She noticed you," he explained, shaking his head. "I told her I'd met you below-deck. Dunno if she bought it - she's frightfully observant. I'd almost say a match for me, except... well, she's not that good."

"You can always tell her we're stalkers." Jack offered. "But did you manage to get anything new from the conversation, or are we hunting her down again?"

"Oh, I figured something out, definitely. She knows." He paused, possibly for dramatic effect and possibly to take in a breath. "She knows what's going to happen to this ship."

"Then..." Rose thought. "Why is she on here?" The same question could be asked of them of course. "Do you have any more idea of who she is? If she's human, how she knows?" Jack asked him.

"She's not human. She knows way too much to be human." He was frowning, walking to the railing to look out over the side. Something to look at that wouldn't look bad, so he could focus more easily. "I don't know why she's here, but I think she's going to try to stop the Titanic from sinking."

"But it does sink. So, she fails. Whatever it is, whoever she is, it doesn't matter tomorrow, does it? It would cause a paradox or something, right?" Rose asked, trying to get her thoughts together. Everything had gone about the way it had been supposed to end up before.

"It's supposed to sink. Unless," he looked up, straightening as if he had suddenly found the right answer, "She's a time-traveler like we are."

"But why come onto the Titanic then? And I doubt she's a Time Agent, as far as I remember the Titanic was more or less out of bounds." Jack pointed out.

"Yeah, because any new element could change history here. Anything. So why... unless they're displaced. Unless maybe it was a mistake." He paused, thinking quickly, turning back to face them. He had that tone in his voice, that mad excitement. "Self-preservation is the strongest instinct in any species. Gotta survive, even if it means changing history. And her, she's good at this. She's smart. Definitely not human, and she's so proper, and..." He let the sentence trail off as he seemed to realize something. "Of course. No, wait. It can't be. Can't be." He didn't bother to clarify - he didn't seem to notice Rose and Jack at the moment.

They watched him, for the most part completely lost. "Can't be what?" Rose asked, wondering if he'd even hear her. She was everyone still seemed to be in at dinner, or elsewhere, or she imagined the Doctor might be drawing some looks.

"Can't be... but it's the only thing that makes sense. If she's not, then I haven't the slightest.." He paused, seeming to rather abruptly key in to the fact that Rose and Jack were still there. "..she's Time Lord. Well, Time Lady, actually, but... she has to be. Just that." But she couldn't. He wasn't sure which was more comforting.

"You're right, she can't be." Jack said flatly. "How many times have you told us you were the last?" "You said if there were any others you'd feel them." Rose pointed out. They had wordlessly agreed that the best thing to do right now was burst the Doctor's bubble before it had a chance to grow.

He frowned, leaning back against the railing again, thinking a mile a minute. "But there's no other conclusion. I... I was sure I would know, but... what if I didn't? If they were displaced, hidden.. maybe they never thought to reach out because they thought they were the last." For a moment he sounded sad, looking at the door to the dining hall. "Maybe they didn't know if the war ended."

Jack thought quickly. "What are your reasons to believe she's a Time Lady? She confused you, the psychic paper didn't work, and she knows about the ship. Is that all?"

"And she's smart, really smart, and proper, and.. there's just something there. Something about her." He didn't stop to think that the something could just be his own wild hope.

"The proper could be a plot, she could be just trying to fit into the the scenario, escape notice. And regardless of your belief there are other species with brains." Jack argued.

"I know that, but.. there are very, very, very few species that think like a Time Lord thinks. Very few. She was countering me, matching me. That doesn't happen." He shook his head. "It felt like.. talking to someone I knew. But I don't know her." This last he said more quietly, as if to himself.

"You're setting yourself up to be disapointed and you know it, damnit." Jack hissed under his breath, barely audible, not really meant to be heard. Rose stepped in front of him. "Why don't you try confronting her on that then, just say the word, words, and see what her reaction is? Worst off she thinks you're mad."

He very nearly winced at Jack's words, turning away from both of them to look out at the darkening sky again. "She'll deny it. She's not stupid." He paused, adding, "She doesn't know what I am; if she does, she'd better than I think. She... won't tell me." Or was he just trying to keep this hope alive? He couldn't say, himself.

"What if one of us tries talking to her? There's not really anything else that can be done, is there?" Rose asked. "Maybe if you try to make her think you want to stop the ship sinking too?"

"Too late for that. I as well as told her I wasn't going to let it happen." He wondered if he would feel the same if she was proven to be a Time Lady, and pushed the thought aside. "But maybe, with the TARDIS.."

"What about the TARDIS? Show her it to prove you're what you say you are or...something?" Rose guessed at random. Jack was gripping the railing.

"I could take her someplace else, so.. she wouldn't have to change the ship's course," he said, half to Rose and half to himself, without looking away from the water. "She'd know what it was.." If she was a Time Lady, like he thought. But he found himself feeling more sure of that - probably because he was convincing himself.

"But for all you know, this could be a trap of some sort." Jack pointed out. "What better bait?" He whispered once more, not making eye contact. The Doctor's seeming eagerness for her to be a Time Lady was proof of how well run a plan could be. He managed to bite his tongue rather then make a comment about how just because Daleks seemed to be coming out of the woodwork of the universe, it didn't mean it had to be the other way around...

"..it can't be bait. It doesn't make any sense. If she were bait, someone would have to know I was going to be here." Because it was something that he dearly wanted. Another Time Lord, so that he wasn't quite so alone. It did seem too good to be true.

"How many times has it happened before? Someone knowing you were going to be somewhere?" Jack asked, then shook his head. "You're not going to be persuaded right now. I'm going for a walk." He turned.

"..be careful," he muttered, almost too soft to be heard anyway. He was half in his own mind, thinking it through. Thinking through his 'facts'.

Jack nodded as he walked away. Rose stared awkwardly out over the water for a few minutes, glancing over at the Doctor occaisonaly. Finally she asked. "If she is...then what?" Her voice was soft and she was looking at the horizon.

He was looking at the water, the sun glistening off the dark waves. "...I don't know. My guess is she hasn't got a TARDIS. Mine's the last." The Doctor shrugged. "I guess... I'll give her a lift to wherever she's trying to get." He didn't know what came after that.

Rose doubted it would end up as simple as that, but didn't voice the thought. Instead she turned to him. "You should find her, figure this all out. So we don't end up at the usual last minute." She tried to joke.

He smiled very faintly, nodding. "I will... I'm not going to let us drown, don't worry." It would have been a better joke if that wasn't such a distinct possibility.

"Did you manage to ask her what room she was staying in this time?" Rose couldn't help but ask. "Or didn't she give you the chance?"

He pulled a face at that. "Didn't get the chance. She went to talk to someone about..." And when he remembered what she'd said, he looked shocked. "Something in her closet. If she's... she can't have been talking about.."

"Her closet?" Rose's eyes widen. "The TARDIS is in a closet! We should go make sure they're not trying to take it somewhere. Wait, how's she got a room anyway? Didn't Jack say she wasn't on the passenger list?"

"She's not. She must've been thinking the same thing we did - find an empty room, any empty room.." He paused, thinking. "We have to go check." He turned and sprinted for the stairs. Few things got such a reaction out of him that the threat of losing the TARDIS did.

Rose ran after him, a bit belated as he'd run off fairly suddenly. She managed to catch up to him easily enough though, and then stayed on his heels. "But, if they, wouldn't that be getting involved in events?" Her mind wasn't at its most coherent.

"Yeah. Yes, it would, if they see it, we're involved, and we can't leave." He was rambling a bit as he walked at a brisk pace. He couldn't keep running without arousing suspicion. "If they've touched it.. I don't know what they'll do with it, to it. They can't get inside, but they can move it."

She wondered briefly, how someone looking at it would make it unable to function, but figured it was a bit more circumstancial then that. "There's not exactly construction equipment around to move it with."

"Thankfully.. but I don't know what they would do with it.. I doubt they'll be able to harm her, but I won't be surprised if they tried." When they reached the room, he pushed the door open without hesitation. Prepared for the worst.

Inside, the room was still the same as they had left it save the the fact that there was a woman sitting on the bed. She did not seem surprised, but stood a moment later, her eyes narrowed very slightly at the intruders. "I believe, it is considered polite to knock, rather then force entry into a woman's room."There was a bit of 'show' to Celestine's mannerisms as she scolded them.

"This was my room last I checked," he replied, raising an eyebrow at Celestine. "So I think you've stolen it." He was utterly perplexed by her presence, despite having almost expected her there.

"I suppose then, that you are the one who left the rubbish in my closet?" She surveyed him carefully. "You should have mentioned this when I informed you of the situation earlier. You might have gotten it before it was moved to storage." Her voice is somewhat challenging as she moves smoothly between him and the closet door.

"Storage? What do you mean?" Now his voice took on a sharpness that was utterly unlike his usual easy tone. "What did you do with the TARDIS?"

Her reaction to his outburst is fairly disapointed. "A sore subject, one that I will keep in mind. Your seemingly rational thought is thrown into the sea at it's mention, so I shall assume it is your lifeboat. It's dimensions are larger then that of the closet door, there is no way it could have been moved anywhere. Nor, has anyone seen it, so calm yourself."

He paused, took a breath. Forced himself to calm down before he spoke again, though his tone was no less sharp for his efforts. "Good. That's very good." He didn't try to explain what the TARDIS was. He'd hoped if she was what he thought, she would recognize it, but it didn't seem to be the case. "It's the only luggage I have, after all." It was very nearly a joke.

"Yes. Though there is a question of how you have gotten it through the door smaller then it, The. Especially, when it was not here this morning." She remarks calmly, allowing polite interest into her tone. "There is, of course, the question also, of the fact that it is not quite the normal shape. A prototype, I can only imagine? Perhaps with plans production in, oh, forty of fifty years?"

So she did know what it was. Or at least knew a bit of it. "It's the TARDIS. And she's not a prototype - she's the genuine article." He cast a glance at the closet door. "Can't produce those." Not really, anyway.

"I was referring, in part, to the fact that by all appearances it is what a police box would appear as circa the 1950s." The statement is rather blunt for her standards, but she supposed it would make due. "Which, given that it is named, I can only assume is your lifeboat's disguise."

"More or less, yeah. It's a police phone box. And not really a lifeboat, per se." He shrugged, calming a bit once he was able to come tothe conclusion that the TARDIS was not in immediate danger.

She breathed deeply for a moment, before nodding. "Allow me to explain simply. This is what you will be leaving the ship on. I suppose my expectations of your grasp on language were raised falsely during our earlier conversations. I shall remember to keep things simpler for you."

"Oh, that's funny," he said dryly, frowning a bit. "I was being technical. Well, not technical, but you know. You're right, though - it is what I'll be leaving on."

"In that case, what reason do you have for postponing your departure? No doubt you will wish to leave before the...festivities. Your avoidance of obstacles, and such."

"Ah, yes. Don't like those. I was trying to puzzle out a bit of a mystery I found." He paused, thinking, before adding, "I don't suppose you could help with that?" Well, since she was the mystery, she obviously could.

"That would depend on the nature of the mystery, I suppose. I do, of course have business to which I must put some effort, I shall see if I may lend you a hand." She watched him calculatingly.

"And what business is that?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. He had a bad feeling from their previous conversations, but clarity never hurt.

She gives him a small, easy smile as she gives him the obvious answer. "The avoidance of obstacles. Now, if you would inform me on the nature of your mystery?"

"Ah, well. You see, there is a peculiar person on this ship, who I think may be a relative of mine... but I'm not sure." He paused, then added, "My family is dead, so this is exceedingly odd." Two could play at word games.

"If your family is dead, I can hardly see how you could have a relative aboard. Unless you are suggesting that the ship is haunted, which would be rather ubsurd." She thought for a moment before continuing. "My own family is in quite good health, though we have a great habit of falling out of touch. Perhaps you should ask the captain if you could see the passenger list, and see if your relative's name is listed?"

"I already looked into the passenger list; they're not on it. It's the strangest thing - as if they don't belong." He smiled faintly.

"I shall not pretend to be so daft as to reccomend that you ask them, but instead suggest that you leave them to their devices. Whether they are family or not, surely they would notice you as well. I myself have found something... strange aboard, though I am not going to inquire upon it unless it comes to me."

"Ah. Well, then we both have our mysteries. But I'm not entirely convinced that I can leave this person to their own devices. That could be ill advised." He was trying to phrase things are carefully as possible. This was a dance.

"Given Titanic's fate, what lasting harm could anyone on board manage to cause?" Celestine asked him primly. "No doubt, the sea holds no fathomable number of mysteries already, what difference would two more make?"

"You never know. Sometimes even just one new element is enough to make a difference," he said evenly. He had no intention of letting such a change occur, though.

"I have no doubts that there are several new elements aboard already. You may want to take a look into storage and acquire the same knowledge for yourself." She did not know how he intended to stop her.

"I may have to do that." He smiled very slightly. "And good luck with your mystery, as well."

"There are more important matters, but my gratitude in any case. I will be on my way now, though, once again I will surely see you later, The Doctor." With that she slipped past him, through the door and down a hallway.

He nodded, watching her leave before going to the closet and opening the door to look at the TARDIS, reaching a hand out to touch the door lightly. He'd been afraid for her for a moment, there.

Rose came into the room now, watching him. She'd stayed silent during the...conversation, but she wasn't quite sure what the Doctor had been so excited about earlier. She'd found herself wishing they'd just come out and say what they mean already. "I wonder what's in storage."

He blinked, looking up from the TARDIS and at her. He'd almost forgotten she was there in his preoccupation. "..I don't know. But we'd best find out." He stepped away from the TARDIS and closed the closet door, concealing it again.

At around that time, the door to the main room opened again, revealing Jack. He seemed a bit surprised to see them in there, but recovered quickly. "Think I can borrow Rose for a minute, Doctor? There's something I want her to see."

The Doctor frowned slightly, but nodded. "..go ahead." He was a bit curious what it was he wanted, but he could just as well look into the storage himself... right?

"What is it?" Rose asked, "If it's something in storage we were just headed down there. You could save us some time." Jack shook his head. "A surprise. Not in storage though. But should we meet back up down there then?" He asked, turning to the Doctor again.

He nodded again. "Alright.. don't be too long." He smiled faintly. "Let's hope whatever's down there isn't a trap." He was fairly sure it wouldn't be - that didn't seem her style.

"Just a few minutes." Jack promised, before leading Rose out of the room, and subsequently up the closest flight of stairs. She waved as she left the room, slightly puzzled but ultimately curious of what he'd wanted to show her, and why he seemed in such a hurry.

The Doctor waited a couple of minutes before he followed; he couldn't help it, he was curious. And they did have the time - still more than a day until the ship went down, right?

Once they were a bit away, Jack gave Rose quiet instructions. "Don't say anything, and don't draw attention. We really shouldn't be doing this but... Consider it part of this." He handed her a folded paper that she put into her pocket as she nodded at him. A few minutes later they were on one of the higher decks, looking down over one just lower. She opened her mouth to ask what she was looking for, but soon followed his eyes. She froze for a moment at the site of the coat, and he took hold of her wrist as she stared.

The Doctor - well, the current one - hung back, but he could see what they were looking at and it froze him to the core. He had very nearly forgotten that he had been here before. Certainly he had never considered that he would see... himself.

"How?" Rose's voice was soft as she questioned Jack, eyes not moving from all too familiar figure. "He must've come here before. It happens sometimes. I don't know why he didn't tell us to be careful not to run into him, but I guess he has his reasons." The Doctor in the leather coat grinned as he talked to someone on the deck below and Rose took hold of the railing.

He thought he ought to leave - turn around and go before his other self looked up. But he couldn't find the presence of mind to actually do so, stock-still several feet from Rose and Jack. Why hadn't he told them? He'd forgotten.

After a few minutes passed, the Other Doctor still chatting, Jack put a hand on Rose's shoulder. "Come on, we should go meet up with our Doctor now." Rose nodded, but not before she'd whispered something in the direction of the man in the black coat. They turned to head down to storage.

Of course, when they turned to go, they would have seen him standing there. He hadn't been able to move away in time - he thought he ought to have, but he hadn't. "..hullo," he muttered, with a hint of a smile that failed to be at all genuine.

"In my experience, storage areas are usually at the bottom of the ship." Jack tells him, but he has something of a smile. As far as he was concerned there was nothing innately wrong about what they were doing. They hadn't been seen, the universe wasn't going to shatter. Wouldn't have if they had. "Did you get lost?"

"Oh, yeah. I've got a rubbish sense of direction," he replied, his tone light, but he wasn't really smiling anymore, shrugging.

Rose moved towards him, slipping out from under where Jack's hand had still been on her shoulder. With her eyes she asked if everything was alright, but what she said was completely different. "Hardly. Come on and let's see what's down there."

He looked at her for a moment, then turned away with a nod, to go to the stairs. He wasn't sure what to say, but finally ended up asking, "Why did you go looking for that?" That, not him. Because it was him. But then again not.

"I didn't." Jack said simply. "Didn't even know you'd been on here before. I thought Rose might want to see that one again. You can't tell me there's never been a time when you took the chance to see one last glance of someone at a point in their life."

He had to pause at that, frowning. He had done that. Many times. He had lost a lot of people, and it was sometimes undeniable, the impulse to see them again, if only for an instant. "I have. I.. had forgotten that I had come here." An admission, almost.

"You're the one we're coming home to, Doctor. As long as you don't remember having run into us, we should be fine. If I had told you, you would'nt have let me bring Rose." Jack pointed out to him. "I'm not even going to ask how you forget you were on the Titanic. Let's go see what's downstairs."

He nodded. "Let's. There has to be something down there that's important." He made a conscious effort of shaking the last couple of moments from his mind, leading them down the steps and then down the corridors leading to the storage area. He did have to use the sonic screwdriver a couple of times, but they didn't run into any staff.

They followed him through, closing doors once they were through them. The lower regions of the ship were fairly empty. When they reached the storage room, it was almost packed with things, small pathways leading through it.

"...well, this isn't going to be a simple search, is it?" He asked, glancing around. He stepped forward, down one of the narrow pathways, glancing through the different boxes and stacks of things. "Why is there a car down here?"

"Someone wanted to have a ride when they got off the boat?" Rose offered, moving through another section of the piles. A few minutes later, from another corner Jack called out. "About that car, maybe they thought it was a parking lot. So seem to have set anchor here yourself, at one point." He patted the police box.

He looked up, walking quickly through the smallish maze of paths until he reached the police box there, staring for a long moment. "..oh, I wasn't expecting that. Should have.." He had parked down here, hadn't he? He should have kept that in mind.

"Memory's not exactly up to par today, is it?" Jack asked him, not really joking. Rose managed to fight her way through the things to reach the general area as well. "Do you think that's what she meant?" She asked.

"I remembered it was here, just... didn't think I'd run into it." He was looking at the TARDIS, then sighed, shook his head. "No, I doubt this is it. It can't be just that."

"We'll have to keep looking then. I'll check the other side of the room." Rose said, moving away in that direction. Jack went towards the other end, moving sideways through a thinner gap.

"Looks like it." He nodded, going back towards the center of the room. The boxes and things tended to be concentrated towards that part of the room.

Coming through the piles, Jack and Rose looked around for something out of place. After a few minutes of searching unsuccessfully, Rose took a minute to make sure neither of them were watching her and pulled out the paper, reading it and then frowning before shoving it back into her pocket and continuing her search.

The Doctor was poking about through the boxes and things, and finally found something he thought might be something - a wardrobe. Well, it was a possibility. He walked up to it, pulling on the doors. Just to see if they'd open.

The wardrobe door didn't budge, but behind it there was a large object with a cloth covering it, singed in some places. It was larger then the car had been.

He blinked, looking around the wardrobe at the cloth-covered object and stepping around it, picking up a corner of the cloth and pulling it up to see what was underneath.

Underneath the sheet was a ship. It's appearance was, at first glance that of a wreck. It looked as far from factory made as it was possible to, and yet something said that it was still one of its better days.

He raised an eyebrow at it, smiling broadly. "Found you. Strange thing." He reached out to touch it, the cold metal under his fingers telling him something, too. This wasn't a TARDIS, definitely not.

Noticing the Doctor's discovery from the corner of his eye, Jack worked his way over towards the ship and him. "Definitely getting a parking lot vibe down here." He joked before he was close enough to get a good look at it.

"Intergalactic parking lot, even," he remarked, taking his glasses from his pocket and putting them on before he started looking for a way in.

Once he'd reached it he gave it a once over. "Doesn't seem to be in the best shape, does she?" He muttered, as he managed to work his way around one side of it in his examinations.

"No, definitely not.." He frowned at the steel. "She's old. No complaint about old ships, but she's showing her age some.."

"Lots of half informed repairs." He noted. "A lot more slapping a sheet of metal overtop then doing the actual finishing. Smoothed down after but..." Jack ran his hand over a very square area that looked much brighter then the rest of the ship.

"It's mismatched. Whoever fixed this didn't have very good supplies.. maybe not a lot of technical skill, either." He paused, looking up. "Find anything good?"

"Just a patch so far. Might be a recent one. No sign of a door yet?" He asked, craning his neck to see over the ship, before moving along it again.

"Not yet..." He searched along the side, taking out the sonic screwdriver to help him check. Moving along until he found a seam that was more sensible than the patchwork repairs. "I think I might have found it."

"I'll be around in a minute." He called over, his attention caught by a panel further down, by what might have been the back of the ship. He moved over to it, squinting. "Just some circles...?" He muttered, running his fingers over it. He guessed it was just another bit that had been picked up, and made his way around.

"Circles?" He looked up from the door panel, frowning when he looked at Jack. "What circles?" One of the very few languages in the universe that the TARDIS would not translate for his companions was his own, after all.

"On this bit of metal. It looks like just another piece of scrap they used, a bit older, but polished a bit I think. Sort of reminiscient of crop circles actually." Jack told him once he's made his way around. "Near the back of the ship."

"I'll go take a look." He couldn't disguise the hint of enthusiasm in his voice, stepping past Jack to go have a look at that panel.

"Okay. I'll poke around here and see if I can figure out what way the door opens then." Jack couldn't help but have something of a sinking feeling at the Doctor's enthusiasm.

"Right. Thanks." He smiled, finding the panel and looking at it. It was... definitely Gallifreyan in origin. He recognized the writing instantly, tracing the indented lines with his fingers.

The writing read 'Home'. On the other side of the ship, Jack had traced around the edges of the groove of the supposed door. There was a small slot on the leftmost side of it. "I think it's a carded entry." He called over.

"..home," he read it in a whisper, drawing back his hand before shaking his gaze from the writing. "Carded? Weird.." He gave a last glance to the Gallifreyan script before he walked back to the entrance, sonic screwdriver in hand. "Maybe the sonic screwdriver can get us in."

"Hopefully." Jack agreed, moving over to make room to give the Doctor access. He hadn't heard his translation of the writing. "So, was it anything important over there, or just some decoration?"

"I'm not sure yet," he admitted, adjusting the sonic screwdriver's setting until he found the proper one, pressing the button down and running it along the card reader.

There was a grinding noise and the panel pulled in, moving to a side with a heavy groaning. The inside was cramped, but lit to a degree. It was rather bare, but Jack noticed something about it right away. "Most of the this is from Earth, or at least human."

"Ah, there we go!" He grinned as the door slid open, but his smile faded once he got a look atthe inside. "..you're right, it is." And, he couldn't help noticing, it wasn't bigger on the inside. It was exactly the same inside as outside - definitely not Time Lord technology.

Jack moved inside carefull, ducking his head somewhat to avoid the mess of wiring that made up the cieling. One section in particular seemed rather burnt. He moved to look at the controls. "Some of this stuff is antique. Well, from sometime late 40th centuries..." He'd meant in regards to his time of origin.

"It's an anachronism. This entire ship.." He glanced up at the wiring, frowning as he thought through it. "I don't think ships have had exposed wires since before the twenty-first century, either."

"Matter of style sometimes. Easy access. I'd imagine it'd be easier to work on them if you didn't have to rip off the ceiling to get to the wiring." Jack pointed out.

"Fair. It's usually not the case, though.. most ships have panels that are removable for access. But I suppose a ship like this would need more maintanance than most."

"It doesn't exactly seem commercial." Jack looked around it a bit more, then headed for what seemed to be the controls. "Video displays are standard enough but..." He trailed off at the sight of the domed screen television sitting behind the controls.

"Hm?" The Doctor was examining the wire systems, prodding at the mishmash of different-century wiring.

"The video display is an old television. Not even a flat screen. I'm not even sure if it's color" He noted. He looked around the console more, at one section in particular. "Lots of layering older technology on top of newer. A few cases where there are things just a tad newer added on."

He turned around, looking at the television for a long moment. "..you're right. I noticed it in the wiring, too. Lots of bits from different centuries just tacked on. Patchwork repairs."

"Just enough to get it going again. Maybe a lack of funds for proper parts? Lack of control as far as time's related... Actually, is there even anything in here that suggests it can travel in time, and doesn't just have a good interchronal junkyard? The controls don't seem to cover any more then three dimensions."

The Doctor shook his head. "This isn't equipped for time travel. Not even remotely... it's not a TARDIS, and there isn't any other kind of time-and-space ship than that." Now, that was a blow to his theory.

"Then, how have they gotten to all the different times? It'd take one hell of a vortex manipulator to move her around." He said as he turned to the Doctor.

"I'm not sure. I actually don't know." And that surprised him. All the clues added up to 'Time Lord', but the technology was utterly different. "This is something else entirely."

"That's for sure. To be honest I'm surprised it can get off the ground with all this mismatched tech. What exactly cued you in to look down here, anyway?" Jack asked, realizing that'd never been explained to him.

He paused, considering his words before he said them. "Celestine hinted for me to take a look here." It was almost an admission, especially since he had been so vehement that he knew what she was.

Jack bit back the urge to tell him he'd told him so. "Though I really shouldn't be adding fuel to your fire, the ship doesn't really mean anything. She could be working with just whatever she has around. If it does, or did, work, it'd be a big contribution to her being brilliant."

A nod. "Yeah. But there isn't any way for her to leave if this is her ship. It doesn't travel time." He considered this, remembering what she had said about stopping the ship from sinking. "Maybe she doesn't intend to."

"Then she's stuck... What would you do if you knew that your were trapped on the Titanic? Er." He glanced at the Doctor. "Maybe not you, specifically. But if you were someone else stuck on the Titanic."

He smiled thinly. "Stop it from crashing into an iceburg." His smile was chilly, though - no pun intended. "Stop it sinking. Which is exactly what she plans to do."

"In which case, I assume we should try to find her?" Jack said. "For whatever it'll be worth, just keep her from doing anything. There're three..." He paused. "I think we lost Rose somewhere."

He nodded. "We can't let her do anything." A pause, when Jack said that, and he looked around behind them. Didn't see her. "..Rose?" He called, suddenly concerned.

"I don't think she ever came over when you found the ship. Maybe she didn't notice?" Jack offered, heading for the door of the ship and peaking out.

"Maybe not..." His expression was pensive, and he walked away from the ship to look around. "Rose? Where are you?" But there wasn't an answer.

Jack followed him out, and thanks to a sudden burst of inspiration managed to make his way onto the top of the ship, to get a look around. He scanned the room a few times, before making a triumphant sound. "Found her." He grinned before sliding off the ship's roof.

"Where is she?" The fact that Jack didn't seem upset calmed the Doctor somewhat - she was alright, then, he hoped. (What part of "do not wander off" did no one get?)

"Asleep in the car you found. Also explains why she didn't answer you." He added with a nod. "I guess she saw we found the ship and figured there wasn't much she'd be able to do at this point."

"She could have said something," he muttered, but he was relieved. He had to admit that he was on guard here. Between Celestine, the ship staff and crew, and his other self, he was on pretty high alert.

"Nothing hurt. Unless you'd like me to go wake her up and yell at her for you?" Jack asked with a raised eyebrow. "Probably didn't feel like explaining herself when she came over to tell you she was going for a nap in the car, wake her up before the boat sinks."

He paused, and nodded. "..yeah. Probably." He shrugged, walking back to the ship. "I'm going to have another look at the systems in here, anyway." And try not to think about how distant he and Rose had seemed for a while now.

"Alright, unless you want a hand I think I'm going to go up and see if she's tried to start influencing any of the crew or such yet. I'll keep an eye out for her while I'm up there, see what she's up to if I catch a glimpse." Jack offered.

"Alright.. be careful, though. I don't know what she's capable of to get to her goal," he warned, glancing at the ship. "I'm not sure yet if I've underestimated her or overestimated her."

"I don't plan to actually talk to her unless she confronts me. ...I will." He nodded as he moved off through the paths. At one point, once out of sight he made his way towards Rose, waking her up. He gestured towards where the ship was, and then made his way out of the room. A bit confused, Rose (carefully) rubbed her eyes, and made her way over.

The Doctor had disappeared back into the ship, poking about the view screens and wires. Trying to determine with more certainty where it had been - and what times. He didn't seem to notice Rose immediately - but then, he thought she was sleeping.

Rose gazed at the ship for a few moments, running her hand along the outside of the ship as she moved towards the open doorway. Once she reached it she peered in, the ship looked a bit odd to her, but she figured it was just her limited knowledge of them. "Doctor?" She asked.

He was surprised, and turned to look at her. He was still wearing his glasses, the sonic screwdriver in one hand. "Thought you were sleeping," he commented lightly; more lightly than he felt, probably.

"Just resting my eyes." She informed him, stretching a bit. Rose decided it'd be better not to tell him it was because she doubted there'd be a chance to sleep before they got off the boat. "So...not a Tardis then?"

He shook his head. "Not Time Lord technology at all. Not in the least." He couldn't help sounding maybe a bit disappointed, but he recovered quickly. "It's weird - little bits of all sorts of different timelines, but it's not a time machine.. look at this, a television that's outdated in your time." He pointed it out. It was interesting, at least, if disappointing.

She blinked at that, but took a few steps in and turned to look at it. "You're right." Rose seemed a bit surprised, and took a few steps forward, something else catching her interest. "There's...and Atari paddle attached on there. It's not actually...?"

"I don't think it plays games, if that's what you're wondering." He smiled at that, shaking his head. "It's just mismatched pieces. Scavenged tech, probably trying to make scratch repairs, just enough to keep flying."

She took in what he told her, looking around and remembering what the outside had been like. "So..." Rose tried to get the thoughts together. "It sort of, crashes through the universe?" It looked like it had, in any case.

He looked at her for a moment. "Exactly right, I think. It looks like it crashes through time, as well, though.. which is impossible."

She leaned against the chair and thought. "You said before time's liquid. Maybe it's heavier, or something? Probably taking a metaphor to far...that is a metaphor right?" Rose looked to him for confirmation.

He thought about that, tapping one of the low-hanging wires. "You could be right. I'm not totally sure how possible that is, but.. that's not a half-bad theory."

She brightened slightly at the fact that her idea hadn't been shot down completely. "So, whatever it is, it's not the actual ship doing the traveling then. It just goes.."

"..could be." That seemed familiar, but he couldn't place it, and dismissed it as one of those bizarre deja vu feelings people got. "But if that's true, then what's causing it to punch through times?"

"You're on about holes in the universe alot." Rose gave him an apologetic look before continuing. "Are there any in time or anything? Maybe it's just really good at falling through them?"

"I keep running into them." He paused to think about her next question, frowning at the ship's awkward console. "Really good at falling through time.." That felt familiar. It sounded familiar, and he searched his brain for what it could be.

Rose was silent, figuring that she'd managed to push some buttons in the Doctor's brain with her guesses. She moved away from the chair, planning to look an another part of the ship, and in doing so a piece of paper fell from her pocket. She frowned at it again, but stopped and picked it up, crumpling it some as she put it back in.

"What's that?" He asked. A bit curious, and moreover it offered a distraction from his thoughts, which he didn't quite like the direction of.

"Oh." She took it back out of her pocket. "Just a note, Jack gave it to me earlier..." Rose trailed off as she remembered something. "Is there any particular reason the TARDIS wouldn't translate something?"

He thought about that. "Usually it would only happen if I asked it not to. Why?" Where had she found something that the TARDIS wouldn't translater for her?

"Because..." She unfolded the paper, smoothed it some and handed it to him. "The bottom bit is in another language, or, I can't read it anyway. You didn't ask it not to translate it, did you?"

He read the letter quickly before folding it and handing it back to her, frowning. "I didn't ask the TARDIS not to translate that... Jack must have."

She took it back. "So, could you read it? What does it say?" Rose wondered, it didn't make much sense to her to give someone a note they couldn't read part of.

"It was a sexual joke," he replied, shaking his head, with a hint of asmile. He wouldn't betray Jack's trust of him then. "He probably just wanted you to give it to me so he could trick us both." He didn't like lying to her, but...

Rose looked somewhat relieved. "Yeah...that sounds right. The rest...he was probably just trying to be dramatic so I'd show it to you, right? Instead of just asking him." She could at least tell herself that for now. She'd ask him to translate it later, she was somewhat curious about what the joke was. Must've been extended exposure to his humor.

"Probably," he agreed, knowing that wasn't the case, but lying for her sake. So that she wouldn't worry. He would have to tell her later, sometime.. if something did happen to Jack, she might never forgive him for not telling her how serious it was.

"In that case, he's been spared a lecture." Rose informed the Doctor. She half thought that she might still want to give him one anyway. Teach him how to write proper apology letters anyway, that don't leave you angrier with someone then before you read it.

"I'm sure he'll appreciate that," he said lightly. He thought it would help if he acted as if there wasn't anything wrong. Slightly off, that, since there were a great many things wrong. "Though I'm sure you had one prepared and all."

"A bit. I was going to go from there." Rose admitted, before looking carefully at the Doctor a moment. "If he brings up any of this... This..." She couldn't think of what to call it. "To you, let me know and we can double team him, okay?"

He smiled faintly, nodding. "Okay. I'll let you know." He wasn't sure if he would follow through on that or not, and reflected that once this was over, he was going to have to apologize for all of this. The lies, the distance.

"Good." Rose nodded, then recalled what he'd been doing when she came in. "You were doing something with the wires weren't you? Did I interrupt? Anything I can do?"

"I was looking at this bit, here. I think it's the vid feed, but look at the different kinds of wire they used." He pointed out a segmented wire running overhead, interspersed with soldered wires of several colors and makes.

Rose looked, those were certainly wires alright. She could see how they were different. "Maybe it has something to do with using the old television?" She offered. "Or they ran out of wire?"

"I think they ran out of wire. See, this part here, closer to the console, that's the original.. then here," he pointed to the next section, "That kind of wire wasn't created until some fifty years later. It keeps bouncing around like that."

"So... Just like the rest of the ship seems to be then, right? Does how old the wire is make a difference?" Rose wondered out loud. Wasn't sure where she'd use the knowledge, but it was a distraction.

"It can. These are all Earth-made. So the pilot's been falling through time, but not really space." He was still peering through the wires, trying to identify their eras of origin.

"So, the ship might not even be working yet? They're sort of...stranded, until they reach a point where they can get things advanced enough to make it go?" Rose puzzles out.

"It's a possibility. It doesn't seem like they'd have any control over where they go - what time, that is. Or else they would choose a time when they could adequately repair this."

"That would make sense." Rose said thoughtfully. "Though, why not wait until they're at a point in time where they can get it all done? Instead of hobbling stuff together?"

"Maybe they can't control it." He frowned at the console, thinking. "Maybe they're desperate to get away from here. Back to their home, or somewhere else."

Rose remained silent, thinking about that. Soon after, there was a knock on the outside of the ship, and Jack peered in. "I've got a story for you, Doctor." He said, somewhat bemused.

He looked up form the console, one hand poised over a couple of switches he'd been pondering. "What is it?"

"I was walking along on the deck, minding my own business when I realized someone was watching me. I looked around, and who's headed my way but our mystery girl? She makes some smalltalk, we do introductions, and then she looks at me for a few seconds like she's trying to see through me." He paused for a moment to catch his breath. "After some hesitation, she asks me to walk with her. No, I didn't try to flirt with her. Anyway, I decide it wouldn't hurt anything as long as we're in the populated area, offered her an arm, and off she went. Now here's the odd part."

"What happened?" He asked, curious, leaning against the side of the control chair in the ship. He wondered what had happened that was even odder than being approached at random by Celestine Smith.

"At one point on the ship she pauses for a moment, then there was a strange sensation. I guess the best way to describe it would be that she was slipping away. When I looked at her though, she seemed normal enough, and if anything she was clinging tighter to my arm. A minute or two later she has a very satisfied look, thanks me for the walk, and moves over to stand by the railing."

He paused, frowning and adjusting his glasses. "Really? ...slipping away." He was thinking hard, considering it all. "This is so familiar," he announced after a moment, frustrated. "All of it adds up, but to what?"

"Can't say I've had any experience with it." Jack said with a shrug. Rose thought about what they'd already talking about, and thought slowly out loud. "We said it might be like falling right? What if it's nothing to do with the ship, but her, and she sort of just takes the ship with her when she falls?"

"Falling.. she's falling through time, and she... oh." The last word was spoken flatly, as he seemed realize what was happening. "She's a time-traveler who slips through time, she knows Gallifreyan enough to have a word of it on her ship, she doesn't mind changing history, and she's smart. Not smart enough. I know what she is." He sounded excited, despite the bitter disappointment he was pushing aside.

"Ah, that's what the circles were then? Well, come on, don't leave us out in the cold here." Jack told him. "Probably won't help us much, but if you're going to think out loud..."

"Tijd-daling," he said after a moment, nodding. "She has to be. Only other race in the universe that can travel time.. chaos travelers. I thought they'd all died, but they probably just slipped away, fell through time." He was still excited, but he managed to make 'Tijd-daling' sound almost like a bad word rather than a name. He hadn't a problem with them, honestly. But he couldn't help resenting them a little for surviving the Time War when his own race hadn't.

"Sounds a bit dutch to me..." Rose mused, before letting the explanation sink in. "So, close but no cigar."

Jack frowned. "You said she can travel through time, but the state of the ship makes it look like she doesn't have any control over when. How exactly would that work?"

"The ship hasn't got anything to do with it. Tijd-daling are chaos - where Time Lords have order, they're the lack of it. They don't have ships to travel in; they themselves travel through time, and they can't control their destinations. The only reason they would have a ship is to travel in space. No TARDIS for the Tijd-daling." He explained it very matter-of-factly, like he was teaching a lesson.

Rose felt somehow like she should be taking notes. "What you're saying is she's stuck on Earth. So she didn't come here to stop the Titanic sinking, but now that she is here..." Jack listened, and thought some himself. "So when she felt like she was slipping away... It was through time? How, why, didn't she?"

"She used you as an anchor, I think." He was trying to think through this. "I think she didn't want to slip through without her ship, so she used you to anchor herself here."

Jack thought for a minute, about his new use as a boating simile. "In that case, we know she's not going to want to leave without the ship. There's also no way to get the ship out of here.."

"Which is a definite problem." He frowned. "But maybe... if I can get her to agree to come with me in the TARDIS, and I can bring her to a place where she can get a decent ship, maybe.."

"But she know you can travel in time, right? Wouldn't she have asked, if she was going to even consider it? She probably told you to come look down here to understand her motivations." Rose said thoughtfully.

"Probably. But I might have to make her consider it." His tone was dead serious. He wasn't going to let her change history, no matter who she was.

"I might have to consider asking you politely to leave my ship." A voice said softly from just outside. "I might also consider questioning the reasoning of your falsehoods."

"Falsehoods, hm?" He didn't seem all that surprised that she was there - or perhaps he was simply good at hiding it. He did step out of the ship, though.

"I hardly doubt that you met your friends here downstairs, that you are traveling alone, or that you are on board with the plans of meeting someone in America. You have more sense then that." There was a bit of a tut in her voice. Rose and Jack shared glances.

"Ah. Absolutely right, of course. Wouldn't have expected anything less." He smiled brightly at that, but those who knew him would be able to see the edge in it. "You're right. I'm not traveling alone - these are my companions, and they came here with me. I came here on the TARDIS, and I think you probably already know what that is, so maybe we should be talking about the lies you told, now?"

"I recall no falsehoods on my part, but I suppose It would not be beneath me to listen to the thoughts of a Time Lord." Still outside, leaning against the outside of the ship, she thinks for a moment. "The only thing that comes to mind is saying that I was without luggage in a passing comment. Unlike you I do not call my ship luggage, so I suppose that may be a matter of opinion."

"Tijd-daling. You concealed your nature from the start." His light tone had fallen abruptly, now dark and serious. "You're clever - really clever. Not as clever as me. I'm not going to let you change this planet's history to your own ends."

"You hardly asked my species, nor openly claimed your own at that fact. I have claimed no origin but my own, nor would I." Her voice remains the same. "You have as much right to this planet as I do, none. Self preservation is a basic instinct in most intelligent creatures, I am not the one who is scared at the thought of saving lives."

"But you can't." He took a deep breath. "You can't. This is an event - tragic, yes, important, yes - which changes the history of the entire world. If it weren't for the Titanic's sinking, humans would still be going around in boats with a third of the lifeboats they'd need! This is the ship that changed the world. When it sank, they refitted its sister ship, the Britanica, and it was a hospital ship. How many people might have died if the Britanica hadn't been refitted?" He was challenging, talking a mile a minute. "You can't change this! You, Tijd-daling, you have no problem changing the world around for your own good, but you can't do it here, and I won't let you."

"Then lock me in my ship, Time Lord. I have worked for to long to leave it. I doubt you would leave your TARDIS. Close me in and keep your History. None shall know any better. Make your choice, I have made mine. I will not fight you if you do what I have said, but otherwise know that I have my mission." She speaks out, over the space of the storage hold, not so much as looking into the ship.

"..those are the only options? Destroy history or kill you?" Now his voice lost much of its sharpness, his eyes focused on her.

"Who is to say I will even succeed? How fluid this particular event actually is? For all you know, the Captain will laugh in my face when I tell him there is an iceberg. You send the humans on this ship to their deaths, and to you they are already dead. What difference would there be, really, between I and them? They have geniuses. It is not nearly so personal an offering as you may believe."

"You're one of the last," he said, more softly than he'd hoped his voice would come out. "If you die..." Then he lost the last connection to his people. Was it that simple? That selfish?

"Ah, the protection of an endangered species. The fact that we are spread does not make us few. Time may have worn thinner around the edges then it has ever been, but that just means there is more seen." She pauses for a moment, and turns her head towards the doorway.

"Most of your kind died in the Time War, didn't they? ..or did you just disappear?" He was honestly curious, but his voice was almost sad.

"Time is worn thin. We are not a stationary people. We have gone nowhere. Does that make it easier for you to think of me in the same thought as the resilient human race?" She keeps her tone, if nothing else.

"I don't want to kill you," he said. "I can take you somewhere else, with the TARDIS."

"Who is to say that by saving me you do not change history, The? I would hate to have you wound your sensibilities. Think now, was my ship found in the Titanic's wreckage?"

"It wasn't," he replied, frowning. "There was no unidentified metal object in the wreckage."

"Then leaving my ship here would change history, would it not? It will not fall through a crack without my contact. Think on this." She almost smiles.

"Why can't you leave? Why change history?" He had to ask. "Why die? What's wrong with your ship?"

"Nothing unfixable. I thought you might object to my flying it up through the inhabited levels, therefore causing, no doubt, mass panic. I also do not believe that there were reports of such from survivors. Nevermind that I am not keen on the thought of the murder it would no doubt entail."

"Why not slip through time again? You're very good at that."

"Think on the conversation, and then you tell me why not." She challenged him.

"What do you mean?" He asked, frowning. "You're not governed by Time Lord laws. You should be able to make a tear to get out through."

"There were enough holes left in the universe after the Time War. I could not if I wanted to though. Your knowledge is lacking if you think we create the holes, at least anymore. They cannot be stitched." She told him simply.

"Because there isn't anyone else to clean up after them anymore, with the Time Lords gone, right?"

"They did not stitch them when they were here. Why else is the fabric of time so much swiss cheese? Neither did we rip them in the first place. We are Tijd-daling, not Tijd-scheur." Her voice is pointed.

"You used them. The Time Lords kept them in check. Now.. it's left that way. No one to close the tears in the universe - rifts in time, dimensions, space." Well, except for him, but that was beside the point.

"Oh, The? If you fall into a hole, do you say that you used it?" Her voice is questioning, but there is something mocking in the tone.

"I say I fell into a hole," he replied, frowning. "But the nature of your people is to use the holes."

"What use is there in something when you do not know when it takes you? Because we are less anchored in our own timelines it is our nature to fall from it? I am more then sure you have some abilities that you-" Her voice cut off.

The Doctor probably would have come up with a reply, if it weren't for the fact that Celestine was abruptly cut off by a hand over her mouth. A hand attached to a body that was entirely too familiar. "Oh, no."

The other Doctor - the Ninth, to be exact - sighed audibly. "Bit careless, letting her go on all night. We're on a bit of a schedule here, you know!" If he knew who the tenth Doctor was, it didn't show.

Just out of sight on the ship, Rose and Jack froze at the sound of the familiar voice. Outside, Celestine was also stunned at her sudden interruption. She glared daggers at the black-coated man, and reached up to try to move his hand from her mouth.

"Ah, no. You're gonna listen, because I'm not going to say this twice," the Ninth Doctor shook his head sternly at the woman. "You're not gonna be saving this ship, and as you're not the captain, you really shouldn't be going down with it." He was talking as pleasantly as if there wasn't a pending disaster coming their way. "Got that?"

She shook her head vigorously, and in a rather uncharacteristic gesture, proceeded to try to bite his hand. Jack looked questioningly at the current Doctor. "I suppose you don't remember this either?" He whispered.

The Tenth Doctor shook his head, mouthing a sort of faint, "Nope." He was a little bit in shock - this was... saying unexpected didn't even begin to cover it.

The Ninth Doctor drew his hand back sharply when Celestine tried to bite him. "Oi! No biting! I was gonna let you go to answer me, didn't know I ought to get a muzzle!"

Celestine was still glaring at him. "To answer your question, yes, I understand. However, that does not change the fact that as far as my ship is concerned, I am the captain, and I can go down with that if I please. To say nothing of your intrusion upon the conversation I was holding with The!"

Rose had moved slightly, still behind the Doctor, inside the ship but trying to get a look outside. Jack moved over to pull her back.

"The?" The Ninth Doctor raised an eyebrow, and the Tenth shrugged helplessly. Puzzled but not deterred, the Ninth Doctor (hereon referred to as Nine, as that's getting tedious) continued, "I'm intruding because you two were gonna be going on about that 'till the iceburg hits, and d'you know, the lower in the boat, the quicker it sinks."

"The Doctor." Celestine explained, still putting as much emphasis as a first name on 'The'. "It is none of your business where and when we hold our discussions. As a matter of fact there are still numerous hours left until the iceberg is hit."

"Yeah, and you-- wait, did you say 'The Doctor'?" Nine looked at Ten (and vice versa), clearly confused.

"We've created our own time paradox," Ten said, his tone intentionally light. "I'm you. Er, in a few years' time, anyway. Tenth regeneration."

"...you're kidding."

She looked between the two of them. "I don't suppose the two of you would be so kind as to step outside so that I can get inside my own ship? If you'd be so kind as to take your 'companions' as well, The." She crossed her arms.

"Plannin' to hole up in there and die, then?" Nine asked, turning his attention away from his (in his opinion fairly disappointing) future self and back to Celestine. "If you can't get your way, you just give up, is that it?" He'd been listening in a bit, yeah.

Ten, realizing that he was being ignored for the moment, gestured for Rose and Jack to get out of the ship. If Celestine decided to go in there, he didn't want them to be there when she did.

"Hardly. My ship is not in the wreckage and, therefore it must go somewhere else. I intend to go with it, especially rather then be surrounded by the likes of the two of you." Celeste nodded primly.

Rose and Jack took the hint, moving out of the doorway, on the far side from where Nine was standing. It wouldn't help much in the long run if they were going to be seen, but in any case, it was something.

"Oh, that hurts," Nine was almost taunting - difficult to tell sometimes. "How are you planning on getting out of here, then?"

Ten smiled faintly at Rose and Jack, though he was paying most of his attention to the exchange between Nine and Celestine.

"I can only suppose there's a hole, either somewhere the ship will be, or where the ship will land. It is airtight, I would think that you would have more problems in meeting yourself then could be present in me."

"Well, fair 'nough, I wasn't exactly expecting it. So you're gonna go in there and wait for the hole in time to let you slip through, then?" Nine wanted to be absolutely sure.

"I see no other choice in getting out with my ship." She told him simply. "I will say that, at the least you seem the more comprehensive of the two of you."

"Just straightforward. Maybe a bit less dense." Nine ignored the look Ten gave him at that, shrugging. "Good luck getting out. Dunno where that time hole will take you, though."

"Thank you, I shall take my chances with my transport." She nodded to him, then turned to go into the ship. Rose and Jack were watching the exchange rather dumbfounded.

Nine nodded. "You'll make it. Oh, might want to take a look at the left propulsion engine when you get where you're going - you're gonna be listing a bit 'till you fix that." Now he was just showing off.

She looked over her shoulder at him. "Then I will hope I land somewhere with decent parts. At the moment my display isn't even in color." She smiled, very slightly, and shut the ship's door.

Nine smiled in return, giving her a small wave before the door shut, though it fell when he turned back to Ten. "Right, then. That's finished. You're really my next regeneration?" He sounded doubtful.

"Yeah.. in a couple of years. Don't seem to get as much time in one form anymore." Ten was quite a bit more serious than Nine seemed.

Behind them, Rose tried her best not to look horribly guilty. She was rather lucky she couldn't whistle, and instead she tried to stare at a random patch of ceiling, while instead watching Nine out of the corner or her eye. The whole effect was still rather obvious and noticing, Jack elbowed her.

Nine and Ten spoke for several minutes, the back-and-forth of Nine almost teasing, disbelieving somewhat, Ten more serious, defensive. In the end, though, they at least didn't seem to hate one another.

"I should be off," Nine commented finally, looking towards the corner of the room where his TARDIS was. If he noticed Rose and Jack at all, he didn't say anything.

But before Nine could go to the TARDIS, Ten stepped forward, whispering something to him and receiving a puzzled look in return, then a smile.

"I'll keep it in mind. Time to go, though. Don't relish the idea of endin' up here when it gets down to it." Nine grinned, walking away - into the TARDIS.

Rose glanced over at Jack, who shrugged slightly. He guessed that crossing your own timeline might be less destructive with Time Lords. Maybe it had something to do with their Doctor not remembering what happened? They were both rather curious about what had been whispered though.

Ten looked at the older version of his TARDIS, frowning. How that had all worked out... he had no idea. He was a little upset by it, but tried not to let it show. It was, admittedly, a bit shocking to meet up with one's past self and find out they thought you looked like sort of an idiot.

Rose moved closer to him cautiously. "So, does that happen, often?" Her voice was hesitant. "You know, once, you/he goes you could go finish your conversation with her. Though, to be honest Jack and me were about to just grab her and carry her up to the TARDIS. It was that or play cards, and we forgot ours."

He shrugged a little. "..happens sometimes. It's funny, I can't seem to get away from myself, however hard I try." Well, that sounded morose. He lightened his tone at the next, "Too bad, that. We'd have something to do while we're still here."

"Could be worse, we could run into another Jack." Rose suggested, grinning apologetically at him for a moment. "Though, I guess he'd probably keep himself busy, come to think of it. Guess there's nothing left to do but get off the sinking ship now, is there?"

"No, we're all set to go." He smiled a bit more sincerely then. "No need to go re-enacting bad Hollywood movies, I don't think."

"You sure?" Jack called from behind the two, ending up rather lopsided as he put an elbow each on their shoulders. "I think the portrait scene's next."

"Quite sure," the Doctor replied, in a sort of mock-prim tone. "No need for that, I don't think. Like I said, no need for re-enactments."

"Speaking of...questionable things." Rose remembered suddenly, and pointed a finger smugly up at Jack. "We found you out." He blinked at her, then looked questioningly at the Doctor.

"..oh. Yes, we did." He smiled at that, figuring that the smile would let Jack know that things weren't too bad. Nothing too serious. At the moment.

He turned back to Rose. "Now, what exactly have I been found out about?" She looked at him flatly. "Your 'joke'." She took the paper out of her pocket, and waved it vaguely infront of him for a minute. "Encrypted messages? Ring any bells?" Realization hit, and he played along, sounding relieved. "Oh, is that all? Good, I'm safe then."

"For the moment," the Doctor replied jokingly, but there was a bit of a serious edge to it that only Jack would probably catch. Hopefully.

He did, and freed the two of them from his elbows. Rose stuck her tongue out at him, then turned back to the Doctor. "You know, for all your assuring me that you're the same person, you were sure pretty skeptical of yourself." She noted.

He paused, looking away slightly. "Well.. I seem to remember also telling you I was a completely different man, as well." Contradicting stories. Not new for him.

Rose couldn't help but notice as he looked away, and frowned. She couldn't help but notice he seemed a bit distant lately. Maybe since Jack had called, maybe earlier then that. She remembered the barest edges of when she'd been sick, and wondered if she'd done something, "Stop it." Her voice was softer then she'd intended, and she tried to gather her thoughts together.

He paused, looking at her when she said that. A bit surprised, perhaps. Wondering. "..stop what?" He asked. As if he didn't already have an idea, wondering if she meant 'everything', or what.

"Just... Comparing yourself? Being so...judgemental, taking everything so personally. Not everything but..." After her bit of rambling she looked at him pointedly. "You know what I mean. You're smarter then that." A moment's hesitation, and then. "And don't you try to take anything I say the wrong way."

The Doctor watcher her as she spoke, only looking away once she had finished, nodding his ascent. "I'll do my best." That, with a hint of a smile. He tried to push the meeting with his past self and associated hang-ups to the back of his mind - having a rather expansive 'mind', it was safe to say that he could distract himself.

"I'll hold you to it." She wasn't quite satisfied with the rather short confrontation, but there wasn't really much else to add onto it, was there? A brief spark of inspiration hit her. "You can start by talking." Rose informed him.

"Talking? 'Bout what?" He blinked, looking at her again. "Anything particular, or..?" He wasn't sure what he'd say if it wasn't anything in particular, but asking helped him pretend some sort of normalcy.

"Stuff that means something. Not," She looked at him pointedly. "Dictionary meaning. It's just been that lately..." Rose trailed off, unsure of how exactly to phrase it.

"..stuff that means something is a pretty tall order," he pointed out. "There's a lot of stuff in the universe that means something." Well, that was a bit more his style, wasn't it? If he could just ignore what hurt - and he was very good at that..

"Alright, stop that. Avoiding things. Leave the universe alone for a couple minutes." Rose told him, almost glad he'd slipped back almost immediately so she could point out to him what she meant. Almost, because she wished he'd stop it altogether.

"What am I avoiding?" He wondered what she thought it was. If it matched up to the truth, or the truth as he saw it anyway. "If I leave the universe alone, anyway, we'll get stuck here." Bad joke.

She looked at him blankly for a few moments. She hadn't thought this was going to be easy but... In one swift movement her finger was moved from her side to the Doctor's head. She tapped it lightly. "The universe can take care of itself for a couple minutes. You've been...off around me ever since I was sick, I think. That's not all but... It's part. Just talk to me."

He hadn't thought she'd noticed. He had rather hoped she wouldn't, but... well, that bubble was broken. "It's really not that much of a... a thing." That statement might have been a touch stronger if he could actually look her in the eyes when he said it.

"If it's not why can't you even look me in the eyes?" Rose asked him softly. "What's so horrible about me that you can't even talk to me about it? I'm not going anywhere. No matter what, or who, or how. But stop holding everything in."

"It's not.. it's not your fault," he shook his head, his own voice a hair lower than he'd have liked. "It's just been a lot happening, hasn't it?" He was reluctant to tell her the truth, but finally admitted, a full minute later and most definitely not looking at her, "I left you, and... this isn't who you wanted to come back, is it?" The awkward phrasing protected him somewhat, like cardboard against a bullet, trying to protect something of himself.

"What kind of question is that? How-" Something clicked inside Rose's mind. Now it was just a matter of wording. "You're you. I'm not going to say that he(?) wasn't fantastic, or that I'm not sorry it couldn't last longer. But you're here now. Every bit as amazing and if I had a choice I'd stay with you like you are now."

"You... really?" It was the sort of answer he had only had the vaguest hope for, that she still.. that she didn't hate him for.. well. "When you were sick.." He glanced away again. "You asked for him. Well, me, but.. not this me." That was where it had started, wasn't it? Yes, she had been right about that. Absolutely dead-on.

"I...?" Rose pushed at her memory, trying to see into the fog that made up her recollections of those few hours. "The only thing I remember is, when I woke up..." She pushed harder at her mind, trying make herself remember. The never thought of using the fact that she'd been sick as an excuse. She looked up to him hopelessly.

"Yeah, I.. didn't think you'd remember." He smiled thinly, but it was hard to tell if he meant it or not. "You were very ill. I.. probably shouldn't have taken it so..." Personally, but he let the sentence hang.

"I'm sorry." She meant it, even if she couldn't remember. When she woke up she'd felt guilty, maybe that was why, and she'd blocked it out? Or it was just blocked out anyway.

"You were ill. It's not your fault," he replied, shaking his head. It didn't mean he hadn't taken it to heart(s), but he didn't blame her, wouldn't.

"That doesn't mean I can't feel bad about it. I'm sure you're sorry for some things that 'weren't your fault'. What if it'd been reversed somehow?" She wanted to finish off this topic, stop trying to see how the scene might have played out in her head.

"I... I dunno." He glanced at her, hesitating. Unsure what to say next, so he let her speak.

For a minute she was equally quiet. Knew she should think of something to close the arguement on her terms, but struggling for what it was. Jack took the opportunity to break in, clearing his throat before talking. "While I'm definitely for the whole conversation, I'm not sure it's the best place for it. Do note though, Doc, that you didn't exactly see me trying to hitch the old you either. Why don't we move you two somewhere that's not going to be sinking soon?"

Jack's speaking up surprised him, as he seemed almost to have forgotten that he was there, but he looked up, pausing a moment before speaking. "Right. We have..." He looked round, and abruptly recalled how rare clocks were in cargo holds. "How long do we have, anyway? Few hours yet, I think.." That was more like the regular him.

"At least half a dozen." Jack assured him. "Just figured it might be a good idea to get mobile now." Rose nodded. "Maybe. Still finishing this up when we get there though. Don't think you're getting off scott-free either." She told Jack.

"Five, six hours, right. Assuming we have five, because it's always best not to get stuck on a sinking ship in the Atlantic during the spring.." He was rambling again, evidently snapped out of things. If he wasn't, he was a very good actor. "We should have about an hour, hour and a half until Titanic becomes one with the iceberg."

"We've been on here for over 24 hours... Time apparently flies on here. Shouldn't take long to get up to the room though." Jack considered with a shrug. "Best to get clear before she hits." Rose glanced back at Celestine's ship, it was still there. "Up we go then."

"So we do. Back to the TARDIS." He didn't look back into the cargo bay as he led the way out - too much there to look at, do. See. He did glance to the side, noting that the other TARDIS had gone. "Funny.. I seem to've left. I didn't hear the TARDIS make any noise, did you?"

"Wasn't really listening, actually." Rose admitted, making her way for the door. "Maybe you're just so used to the sound you tune it out?" She offered. Part of her wondered at exactly what point it had left.

"Maybe. Thought I'd've noticed, though. I mean, not often you get to wave goodbye to yourself.." He shrugged. "Ah, well. Things still work out. I haven't changed history too badly by talking to myself."

"Well, that's good. Lots of not changing history going on today then." Jack said, grinning slightly. "But just curious, shouldn't you be able to remember when you left?"

"I.. should, yes. Sometimes there's a delay." Time Lord-speak for, 'he forgot'. "It's weird, though. Remembering meeting yourself. First impressions are awful for the self-esteem, you know."

"From the sound of it Rose isn't finished yet, and now she has something else to work with." Jack noted off handedly. "Still can't say I've ever met myself, don't plan to try."

"No, that'd be bad. Most people meet themselves, the universe sort of implodes. Definitely not a good idea." He was smiling anyway, of course. The idea of universes imploding didn't dampen his mood - probably because he'd dealt with them so often.

"You've got to admit, Doctor, at the moment I'm not quite 'most people' myself." Jack was joking, for the most part. Rose was thoughtful. "Imploding seems a bit much. Didn't seem that extreme when..."

"Fair enough, but still - point remains. You're still human, therefore, meet yourself, world implodes." He gave Rose a slightly exhasperated look. "I was trying to make a point," he complained, but a bit more good-naturedly. "It isn't really imploding, per se, but.. well, it's very complicated, so, I generalize. World implodes."

Rose grinned at him, sticking out her tongue slightly. "World didn't quite implode either. Stayed pretty sold. 'Bout the only thing that didn't go odd." She was teasing him now. "So I take it no vacationing in Pompeii for the next trip?" Jack threw up his hands quickly in mock defense. "Kidding."

He grinned back, shook his head. "You know, you're ruining my very well thought out explanation. I'm saying it implodes because that explanation serves two purposes: to simplify it - because really, who understands all the physics and shifts of the universe? Other than me. Anyway, it was also to be a warning." He paused, still grinning, and added, "And no, no Pompeii. Having enough of these parties with the sudden, violent endings.."

"Ahh..." Rose said, drawing out the sound before grinning wickedly. "No Time Lord bogeymen then? Instead it's if you don't go to sleep by 8 the universe'll implode?" Jack raised an eyebrow at the Doctor. "I don't recall picking 'doomed ocean vessel', though I might have been a bit vague. Don't recall asking for volcano-day either, I see you're jumping to conclusions."

"I didn't pick 'doomed ocean vessel', either! It picked me," he insisted. But that did happen an awful lot, didn't it? "And no, I was never told the universe'd implode if I didn't sleep." He was scowling at both of them, but the amusement in his eyes made it pretty obvious he was faking.

"You're right...I guess not." Rose grinned again. It had dawned on her after she'd said it already that the mention might not be the best idea, but she was glad he seemed to have taken it well enough. "Well then I really must wonder what you did to the TARDIS for her to decide to land you in all these lovely locales."

"Think she just sensed the interference here from Celestine and decided we'd better see it while we're in this time period." He shrugged. "Either that or she still resents my tellin' you to let her go, way back." Back on Satelite Nine, and now it was his turn to think he ought not have mentioned it.

"Well then, she's not much for pinpointing her revenge, if it's the latter is it? I didn't, and you didn't, and Jack had nothing to do with it either. You'd think she'd relax." Rose grinned.

"Well, it was technically me saying it.. anyway, I'm pretty sure it's the former. If not, that's some unintentionally bigger revenge." He grinned. "TARDIS won't let me down, anyhow. She's not that petty."

"Also not exactly conductive to the whole 'letting her go' thing, if she ends up floating in the Atlantic. Or sunk." Jack pondered for a minute which the Tardis would be likelier to do. He imagined whichever it felt like.

"Well, no, that's true. Anyway, she's smart enough to know that getting me killed won't help anything." Well, that was pretty obvious.

"Ah, the magic of walking and talking. Look, almost to the room and still-" Jack glanced at his wrist. "Five hours to spare. Knock on wood."

"Well.. just curious," he asked, his tone light, "Are we counting from when the ship hits the iceberg, or when it sinks?"

"I believe, hitting it. If not we've been here even longer then I thought. Doesn't seem exactly logical to count points in time where the boat's in two halves and vertical as time to get back to the TARDIS does it?"

"No, I was just wondering." He smiled, shrugging. "Sometimes you just never know. And the ship actually went vertical before it snapped in two - water concentrated to one end, and.. you know, I thought I was bad at nautical history."

"Yeah, might be a little hard for it to snap in two before going vertical...Unless it was one hell of an iceberg." Jack mused. Rose opened the, unlocked, door to the room. "Why do I have trouble seeing you being bad at any kind of history?"

"Icebergs are tricky, but not that tricky." He laughed at the last question of Rose's, and tried to look innocent - failing miserably, of course. "Well, I dunno. Just good, I guess?"

"Must be." Rose rolled her eyes at him, passing through the doorway and off to the side. "Can't think of any other possible explanation."

"Right, so that's it." He grinned, walking into the room and directly to the closet, pulling it open to access the TARDIS. "I won't pretend to know everything, of course - that'd be boring - but Earth history? Easy." He was mostly boasting for the sake of the joke, really.

"That why we're always hanging about here? Local expertise?" Rose joked, following him over to the closet. "You do still owe me dinner you know. Procrastinating's just gotten one more added to the bill."

"That's not fair," he said, rummaging in his pocket for the key. "We were unaviodably delayed. Several times. For a very long time. What I mean is, not my fault."

She looked over her shoulder at Jack. "Hear that? No dinner for you." Jack put on a wounded look, but grinned a few seconds later. "You two can have your alone time, I'll wait in the TARDIS. Let me know ahead of time so I don't wait up."

"Yes, mother," he replied, finding the key and opening the TARDIS doors, possibly to escape any retribution for that crack.

Jack wasn't so quick to give in, and followed him, Rose nearby. "In that case, home by 11 or no bananas for you, sonny."

"Oh, I'm hurt," the Doctor replied, grinning still. "You're giving me a time limit. That is so unfair."

"Don't make me ground you." Jack mock-threatened. "Or better yet, I'll make you two take the cooking back over."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" He asked innocently, going to the TARDIS's controls.

"I can cook for myself. I'll just make sure not to leave leftovers. You've got a library, you can't tell me you don't have a single cookbook in there." Jack argued.

The Doctor had to think about that. "I... don't believe I do," he said, shrugging. "Never thought about it."

"We'll just have to go out and eat, enjoy the nightlife and leave you to clean ship then." Rose teased Jack. He smirked at her. "You two taking in alien night life, that is something I'd have to follow along to see."

"Now, I never said anything about taking him out to dinner, too," the Doctor complained to Rose, though he sighed and added, "But I guess if he insists... besides, I still haven't figured out how to pay for dinner yet.." Well, he was sure he had some currency here somewhere.

"I think the point was, that you said you weren't." Rose pointed out. "I'm just following along if you go for the nightlife, not such a big fan of restaurants actually." Jack informed them.

"Ah. Then I don't have to worry.. as much. Should take a look for some kind of currency once we know where we're going, though.." He grinned. "Hopefully this time we won't get pulled off-course."

"No real course yet to be pulled off of. As for currency, I'd think you'd know better then to offer to take someone to dinner without having a way to pay. Unless you were planning on spending the rest of the evening washing dishes?" Jack joked.

"Nah, I was planning on you two spending the rest of the evening washing dishes, whilst I pretend that you two were paying to begin with," he teased, shrugging.

"Ah, so you were planning on having Rose do the dishes herself then, before I entered the picture. How could you?" He shook his head in mock dissapointment. "And you'll have a bit of trouble with that plot when you realize that I, unlike some, have learned the use of money."

"I'm a cruel man." He grinned despite trying not to. "And that's really a pity. You'll never know excitement if you've never had to run top-speed out of a restaurant because the locals punish theft with burning."

Rose looked skeptically at him, but smiled. "So everything else, all that running, nothing. You get your excitement from eatting and running?"

"From death," he corrected, then paused to consider. "Well, there are more exciting things. But that is awfully fun."

"Sort of marathon training for you then? Escape the locals and get in shape for when the world's gonna end in a couple minutes unless you can push this button in time?" She mused.

"Exactly. Well, and I sometimes forget. That I don't have money on me." He shrugged, trying to look a bit innocent and failing.

"Course you do. Easy mistake, what with how often you seem to carry money." Rose said simply. Jack shook his head at them. "This is why you go for credit. Some things are accepted anywhere. Almost."

"Well, I could do that," he admitted, adding, "But then I'd have to put my name down on something, and it'd chase me round, and... no, definitely not."

"Then I suppose I'll have to deal with dinner with the eatting out too. Long as you're not planning anything ridiculously fancy, often, should last awhile. Not like I've got fuel to get." Jack made a show of grinning sufferingly.

"Good man." He grinned again. "Definitely nothing fancy, though. Too structured." He made a bit of a face. Rules? Not for him, unless he was making them.

Rose eased her way back into the conversation. "So, where to then? Still that first place? Wherever that was, anyway." She racked her brain for a few moments. "An-something or another?"

"Sounds like a good idea." He nodded, going to the console. He went to press one of the buttons and stalled, his hand in midair. "...what happened to that button?" He trusted they'd know which one, since it was missing.

Rose glanced over briefly, noted it and shrugged. Before she had a chance to say she was clueless though, Jack had managed to dig something out of his pocket. "Ah, you mean this one?" He held the offending object up innocently.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, frowning slightly. "What'd you steal that for?" Of course he knew what that button did, but... still.

"Because I told you, you won't be using it again until after you're rid of me." Jack's explanation was simple, and he shoved the button back into a pocket. Sure, there was nothing to stop the Doctor putting another button there, but it was a matter of making a statement.

"But... you've defaced the TARDIS! You can't do that." He was very near pouting.

"She didn't seem to mind." Jack told him with a shrug. "Don't worry, everything else is fine, no cut wires or anything. Promise."

"She likes you too well. I'm gonna talk to her about that." He frowned at the console. "I can't believe you took the button off the console!"

He spread his arms with a flourish. "How else was I supposed to make sure? Nothing personal either of you, though she's definitely got taste."

He sighed. "You. Are. Impossible. And I already said I'm not planning on doing it again!'

"And I suppose you'd been planning for it, this time?" Jack crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "For all of about 10 minutes, am I right?"

"And if I hadn't, we'd be dead. Well, you'd be dead. I'd be a battery, and then dead. So I think it worked out for the best in the end."

"No, because you see, I had some time to think about it. Could've ended vaguely the same as it already did, and without the button, one hell of a lot earlier." Jack told him pointedly. "If it makes you feel better, by all means take the button back. I'll put it back on if you want, but when the time comes to press it you'd better hope you've got some long arms."

"Already said I'm not gonna do it again, not if I can help it." He paused, adding, "If it comes to it, I'll have to press it myself, then." He hadn't quite placed why exactly Jack was insistent that no one else was going to press the button. Probably because he'd passed out afterwards.

"I guess so." Jack took the button out of his pocket again and tossed it towards the Time Lord. "Or the situation had better be a bit more thought out this time."

He caught the button, looking at it with a frown before setting it back in place, holding it there with the aid of the sonic screwdriver. "I didn't have time to think it out any better."

"Could've always hung about in the vortex for a bit. Can't help wondering if the 'wait three months' was the best idea. If they travel through time wasn't there a chance anywhere that they'd have gotten there a month before the time was up, directly from where they'd been?" He'd had a little to much time to think.

"A chance, but... I don't know how they found us to begin with. I really haven't the slightest. They should've been unable to trace me when I was human." He shook his head.

"I didn't really ask. Might've been an idea actually. If I ever run into them again I'll find out for you." Jack joked.

"Yeah, don't think that's gonna happen anytime soon. Hope not, anyway. Then I'd have to actually do something to stop them, myself.." He paused. "Assuming I could." He was reasonably sure. Kind of.

"You probably could, but it probably won't." He decided without much thought on the topic. A few moments later Rose came back into the console room, dressed normally and Jack realized he hadn't even noticed her leave.

The Doctor, absorbed in his argument with Jack, hadn't noticed, either, until she came back, giving her a brief nod. "Welcome back. Got tired of the dress?" Conversationally.

"Bit formal for my tastes. Not really the best to run in, besides." Rose pointed out to him lightly. "Though now I suppose we'll end up somewhere else the dress would've worked?"

"Of course. Guess the TARDIS likes to make you spend lots of time in that wardrobe." He paused, and added, "Inconveniences people like that sometimes." So it sounded less, as he realized it did after saying it, like the TARDIS was a voyeur.

Though, to be fair the TARDIS had just spent a bit of time with Jack. "Either way, before we get there, don't think that I was finished with you two. You-" She paused for a minute. "I see you got your button back?"

He nodded, glancing at the button. "Yeah, I did." He was worried a bit about what exactly Rose still had to 'finish' with him. That didn't sound promising.

She nodded slightly, then focused her attention on the Doctor. "You said that you're useless as a human. John Smith was not useless." Her voice was casual enough as she told him, just a simple correction to facts.

He blinked, surprised by the comment. "..what d'you mean?" He asked, frowning slightly. Curious.

"What I said. That's all." Rose told him simply. It wouldn't exactly do well for the conversation to praise him for the equivalent of a suicide by watch.

"How was I not useless as a human?" He frowned, trying to puzzle it out. He couldn't think of it, but then, his opinion of humanity at large did tend to be a bit condescending, didn't it?

She eyed him for a few moments, before finally responding. "Figure out for yourself." Her voice was almost challenging, but not quite. Rose wasn't going to spell it out for him.

"..that's not really fair," he complained, sighing and sitting in the control room's lone chair, thinking to himself. A bit confused.

Satisfied that the Doctor was occupied, she turned to Jack for a moment, taking the paper out of her pocket and waving it in his direction. "Oi, you now. Don't think you're getting off easy. What do you think this is?" He blinked at her innocently. "A letter?"

"Oh, this'll be good," the Doctor muttered, raising an eyebrow as he watched the other two for a moment.

"I think you missed the point of it after the first line, maybe two. That would've been fine to start." Rose told him matter of factly. "Oh, and don't think, the two of you, that you're clever together. Well... Anyway," She pointed a finger at Jack. "Don't think the TARDIS likes you as much as you think. And you Doctor, trying to play along with him, and letting me pretend it was a joke." Rose was picking up steam now. Jack glanced over at the Doctor, remaining carefully silent.

The Doctor was very surprised by that, managing a rather meek, "You said you couldn't read it!" Almost accusing.

"You said it was a 'sexual joke', and let me play along." Rose retorted flatly. "I asked because it mentioned translation and I wanted to see what you would do." She glanced back at Jack. "Though it's not like it's hard to just write him his own!" Jack wasn't sure how to respond. "Could've." He admitted weakly.

"I... how come you never told me you could read it?" He asked, startled by this. "And technically he did write me his own. Well, a great deal earlier and not really to me, but you know.." That might detract the attention from him, and anyway, he had been meaning to talk to Jack about that.

"How come you never told me what it really said? What do you mean by that?" Rose was speechless. Almost. Unluckily for them. She decided Jack was the one who need the yelling at. "You wrote more then just this?" Jack shifted. "Just one, not really like that, more a distraction then anything. A timewaster, to either you or John. Worked well enough, I think."

"Well, not really, actually. You died. You used your letter to distract, well, John 'till you could go off and die." His tone slightly accusing, then. "Neither of them knew you could come back, you know." It was strange, very strange to talk about himself, or an aspect of himself, in the third person.

"For maybe an hour tops?" Jack's reply was somewhat hesitant. "It still served it's purpose." Rose glared at him, and opened her mouth, but he quickly cut her off. "Alright, I might've been able to add onto letter that fact. Would either of you have believed it anyway?" He looked between them.

The Doctor paused, thinking. Shrugged. "I'm not sure about John. Rose, maybe." Well, he wasn't totally sure about that - it seemed from the journal, which he'd looked at a couple of times, that John Smith did have quite the imagination, and a willingness to believe what he dreamed up. And rightly so.

"You could've at least tried." Rose told him. "We could've thought of something else- and don't you dare say that it was my idea. You twisted it." Jack ran a hand through his hair, and looked up at the ceiling for a few seconds. "What would you have had me do instead? Sit and plan while they used him? Let you know what was going on, so that you wouldn't let me go up there myself and have something happen to you because of something stupid?"

The Doctor sort of winced at that, glancing at Rose. "He does sort of have a point..." Well, he had to admit it. "It did get it done without any lasting harm.."

"They said they're immortal now. Who knows what they wanted to live forever to do?" It wasn't Rose's strongest argument, but she held onto it anyway.

"I dunno," he admitted, shaking his head. "Guess most things want to live forever. People do, aliens do... frankly I'd find immortality horribly boring if I were them, but who knows? Most people've got a sort of rose-tinted lense view of immortality, in the end of things."

Jack took his chance to move quietly through the door to the rest of the TARDIS. He wasn't exactly interested in listening to the Doctor talk about the possible boredom of immortality. He'd find out sooner or later he guessed. Rose let him go. "It's just...all that, and they got what they wanted in the end."

The Doctor didn't try to stop him - he reflected that he should have known that talking about that would probably upset the man. He couldn't blame him. He scratched the back of his head, looking at Rose. "Well.. not exactly. They'll live forever, but they'll never be as powerful as they would've been if they'd gotten me." It wasn't him boasting, it was simple fact - a human, even an immortal human, wouldn't give them the same boost as a Time Lord.

She nodded, if slowly. "So hopefully they...behave anyway." Rose had an odd thought that they might have underestimated immortality anyway. Maybe if Jack ever did get bored he could hunt them down for a bit of a surprise. "Almost what they wanted then."

"Almost, yeah. Not quite." He smiled thinly. "Bet it'll be a bit disappointing to them. Living for an eternity, no more powerful than they were before. Down to your level, no offense."

She shrugged. "They might fit in well enough,working at the school and whatnot. I hear they're bad at letting teachers go." Rose tried to joke.

"Are they? Well, they'll find it pretty hard to get rid of immortal teachers.." He thought for a moment. "You know, that'd almost make sense. How people say sometimes their math teacher's been at the school forever - what d'you think they'd say if it was true?"

"Government conspiracy? I don't know. They covered up Christmas with 'mass hallucinations'. They'd explain it away. Wouldn't stop the kids from looking through the old yearbooks though." She finished with a grin.

"Exactly. 'Course, they'd probably claim they'd been doctored, but wouldn't it be funny?" He laughed. "It's always gotta be the maths teacher.. maybe the English teacher, would that be the only way to explain how old the books are?"

"Definitely. Especially the way some of them talk on about the old authors like they were old flames in English." Rose agreed, still grinning. "Then they sub for history, and the class gets really suspicious."

"Exactly! And what about the history teachers who talk about it like they were really there? I mean, you'd think sometimes, wouldn't you, that they'd been there for the French-American War, or the second World War, or wherever?"

"Actually most of my history teachers were a bit dull... There was this cute sub though once, don't remember what he covered." Rose realized she was getting a bit off topic there.

"Really? I'm shocked," he replied, grinning. "You know, when I was in school - and this was a very, very long time ago - I remember most of the lessons, but I got pretty rubbish grades. Funny, that."

"Let me guess, bad with tests, horrible under pressure?" Rose was joking with him. "Or doesn't play well with others? Alright, I'm done. Really."

"Oh, doesn't play well with others, definitely. You know how I am," he said airily, grinning.

"Yup." She commented dryly. "You're being horribly anti-social at the moment, for instance. Though, I thought you placed first in... jiggerypokery?" Rose teased, trying to remember the right term. "Lucky go?"

"That was my best course! Very lucky. I mean, I can assemble a sonic screwdriver, but beyond that, you know, not very good at all!" He made a face, obviously joking. Well, he was a fair hand at jiggery-pokery, even if it hadn't been a real class.

"Still need to work on those deadlock seals though." Rose tutted, then after a few seconds couldn't withhold the curiosity. "I never asked him, but..." She trailed off for a minute. "Are we going to have to keep an eye out for love-struck physics students wondering whatever happened to their teacher the next time we drop in for milk?"

That question caught him off-guard, and he paused, looking at her, while he thought of an answer. "Er, no, I.. don't think so, no. Don't think John had a taste for the students. Why?"

"I was asking the other way around, actually." She told him a bit pointedly. "Just curious, I've been a daydreaming student before, quite more recently then some." Rose added, jokingly.

"Ah, yes.. that, well, I don't seem to remember John having any particularly daydream-y students." He smirked, shaking his head. "And um, if we do run into any, I'll just tell them I'm not John Smith, I'm his invisible friend. Or perhaps he's my invisible friend. Hard to say."

"Right. Next thing you'll be getting the tinfoil rescue treatment then." Rose shook her exasperatedly. "If it's not one of you it's the other." She smiled at him.

"Well, it's not my fault I'm troublesome.. and since he's sort of part-me, that makes him troublesome as well. You're just stuck with the trouble."

"Least I'm 'jeopardy friendly' then. I suppose that means when trouble comes around I invite it in for a cup of tea, and out for chips later?" Rose wondered, putting a hand to her chin in an attempt to look thoughtful.

"Something like that." He grinned. "I bring trouble round, and you've got to make friends with it, or something, and then.." He shrugged helplessly, teasing her.

"And then I suppose you make the trouble go away." She realized after she spoke that the line seemed a bit meaningful for the conversation, and quickly added on a joke. "Never let me have any friends." Rose told him with a fake pout.

"I know, I'm awful." He smiled, but it was sort of true - it did seem an awful lot like whenever Rose brought someone into the TARDIS, they ended up leaving forever, or seemingly forever, not long after.

"I'll forgive you." Rose assured him with a smile. She'd managed to get one person who'd be rather hard to get rid of. A bit harder if he didn't stop writing 'leave me behind' notes.

"Good." That time he meant it, even if he was still smiling. It was funny, the people who had been left behind had been so for a valid reason - including Mickey, who chose it - but he still felt like he needed her forgiveness for it.

In the moment after that, he thought that there was really something he should say - or do, whichever - before they closed the book on John Smith. As it seemed like they were halfway past the subject of him entirely, he thought now would be a good time. "Oh, Rose?" Pause. "There was one more thing, about John Smith."

Rose looked at him carefully, as if trying to determine what he was going to say before he said it. "Hmm? What's that?" She asked curiously, half wondering if maybe he was going to try to guess what she'd meant by him not being useless.

He took a few steps forward, so he was standing near her, before he said, "He wanted me to tell you something. Well, give you something, really." A bit awkwardly - as it was a hint embarrassing and, perhaps, he would rather have been doing it as himself than on behalf of Mister John Smith (but that was just speculation), he leaned down to kiss her, gently.

He wasn't sure how he knew that was exactly the message John Smith had wanted for her. He just knew.

It had been almost the last thing Rose had been expecting. She almost froze, blushing, but didn't pull away. It was just them there, a ghost's goodbye and the Doctor. Her Doctor there, even if he was acting on behalf of John. A very human part of her trusted him to tell her, if ever there was a time it wasn't.

When he pulled back from the kiss, his expression was nearly unreadable. He couldn't begin to understand even his own feelings about that, the ghost of him who had fallen in love - because that's what it was - with her. Wondered what that said about him, as John was his human shade.

Rose's voice was soft when she finally spoke, and she meant it to both of them. To the sender, and to the messenger, for all they were equal parts. Because she could see that in a way it could be a rather hard message to deliver. "Thank you."

He nodded, smiling faintly. "Welcome." He wanted to apologize, almost - for what, he wasn't sure. Just because that was the last message, and John was 'dead', and wasn't that a bad final thing to do to someone, a bit tactless?

She nodded back, almost mirroring him. It was, in all respects something more of an awkward moment then the kiss had been in itself. A thought swam steadily to the top of her mind. "So... We haven't exactly left the soon to be sinking ship yet, have we?" It was enough of a distraction, she hoped.

He paused, the question surprising him, but thought for a moment, finally coming up with, "Er, well... we were talking." That was an awfully lame reason to stay on the sinking ship, but it was true.

"I know, just, I just remembered too." Rose stumbled over her words slightly, and pushed her hair behind an ear. "Doesn't seem to have sunk yet, so I think we're okay." She added, giving the Doctor a small smile.

He smiled slightly in return, nodding. "Right, well, probably not. Though there were reports of people on the ship who never felt the impact - there's a comforting thought." He seemed to be back to himself, at least, going to the console. "Shall we?"

"Sure, rather not wait and find out, if it hasn't yet." She followed him partway, staying far enough back to be out of the way. As she moved, the door to the rest of the ship opened, and Jack reentered the room, a small box under his arm.

"Probably a good idea." He grinned, looking up when Jack came back in, raising an eyebrow slightly at him. "What's in the box?" He asked. As if he wasn't going to.

"Pictures." Jack's grin was mischevious as he moved the box out from under his arm. "Labeled, luckily enough. Complete with a note. Just sitting in the wardrobe, could've sworn I hadn't seen it in there before." Rose glanced toward him with interest. "Pictures of what?"

The Doctor blinked, surprised by that. "Pictures? Why would the TARDIS keep pictures..?" Of course, he knew it wasn't really the TARDIS keeping pictures, it was him.

"People." Jack answered Rose, before addressing the Doctor's question. "The note was signed by... Well, someone with really bad handwriting anyway. Fairly short, might have started with an A."

"Oh. Well." He was obviously surprised and a bit wary about the pictures. "..funny, I would've thought those would end up in a back room somewhere. The wardrobe, really?" Casual, like he didn't really wish they wouldn't look at those.

"Hidden under a rather immense scarf actually." Jack admitted with a shrug. He turned his attention to the box, taking off the lid and putting it underneath. Rose moved over to get a better look.

Of course. Leave it to the TARDIS. Or Ace. He was sort of assuming it was Ace who'd written the note. When Rose stepped towards the box, he stepped away.

Jack took out a photograph from on top, showing a shortish man with a question marked-jumper and umbrella, and a girl in a big black jacket. Rose was a bit disapointed, the photograph itself seemed normal enough. She'd sort of expected more from them, seeing as it was Jack who had brought them out. "Who are they?"

"They're me," the Doctor said, not looking at them, or even at the pictures, fully across the console from them, as if being across the round structure would keep him safe, one hand on the metal. "And.. people I knew." That he no longer knew, for obvious reasons like being over nine hundred years old.

Rose's gaze lingered on the picture for a few more seconds before she turned to the Doctor. "Any particular reason you're hiding from them?" Jack asked, glancing up. He turned the card, reading some of the same horrible writing from letter. He could just make it out.

"I'm not hiding," he replied, his voice a touch sharper than he'd intended. He took a breath, pausing and then adding, "I'm making sure we're all set to leave, is all. Figure you two can go over the past if you want." His forced his voice into a tone of nonchalance.

"My mistake." Jack seemed a bit skeptical. "We can wait for you." He offered, standing the picture up in the box, leaning it against the side. "Didn't realize we still hadn't gone anywhere yet."

"You two can go ahead, just don't drop those if there's turbulance." He was trying very hard to resist the urge to take the stupid box back and stuff it under his bed or some other cliche, silly hiding place and never speak of it again.

"We won't." Rose assured him before turning back to the box. They glanced through several more pictures of the same version, in different settings, and two different companions. The next picture they pulled out featured a much more colorful man. "Think I've seen that coat before."

"It's in the wardrobe." He didn't bother to force himself to sound cheerful, starting at the switches, dials, and buttons of the TARDIS's controls. Getting them out of there.

"Towards the back." Rose voiced her recognition. They looked through a pile of others, staying silent for the most part. Almost all the way on the bottom was a black and white picture, burnt on the edges. Jack smirked at it, idly telling one of the three pictured "Nice legs."

The TARDIS shook as it dematerialized, vanishing out of history and into space. The Doctor moved from switch to button to lever, doing the usual half-dance it took to get and keep the TARDIS in the air - or, well, what passed for it in space. They landed a little spectacularly - hitting so hard the Doctor nearly lost balance; that was what happened when he let his mind wander while piloting the TARDIS.

They managed to grab hold of some nearby architecture to stay afoot as the TARDIS shook. Jack clinging to the box, while Rose clutched the last photograph tightly. Once it had stopped she glanced down to the picture once more.

Once they'd stopped, the Doctor paused. He'd brought them back, for the moment, to London. They could figure out where to go next from there, since they wouldn't be on a sinking ship. He wasn't sure exactly what to do about the photos.

Jack put the lid back on the box, moving it back underneath his arm. "So Doctor, where are we now?" He asked lightly. Rose moved her hands behind her back.

"London," he replied, glancing at them. "Your - well, Rose's time. For the time being, figured we'd get our wits about us before we set back off."

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Rose said with a smile, moving her hands now into her pockets. "As good a place as any to figure out where to go next." Jack agreed.

"Yeah - that it is." He paused, looking at the vid screen. "So! Can I have my photos back, or were you planning on scrapbooking?" He didn't sound angry - more amused. Or maybe faking it. "Not that scrapbooking isn't an admirable profession, but Jack, I didn't take you for the type."

"Sure." Jack moved towards him, holding out the box. "If I did take up scrapbooking, I don't think these would be quite the pictures I'd go for. No offense." He added as an afterthought, smirking slightly.

"I never did get to be photogenic," he complained, taking the box and looking at it for a moment before putting it in a smallish drawer in a stand that didn't seem to have been there before.

"You didn't do bad in the white." Jack assured him. "Though I will say that your taste in company seems to have remained a constant. Can't help but wonder about the girl in the skins though." Jack joked.

"Long story." He shook his head. "Very long story. Long, long, long story, that you probably don't want to listen to, because it's awfully dull if you weren't there, anyway.." And he didn't want to tell it. But hey.

"Another time then. Though, I will say I can hardly imagine you going well together with 'dull'." He crossed his arms and moved backwards a bit. Jack couldn't help but wonder about the Doctor's seeming lack of interest in the photos.

Rose looked hesitant for a moment, before brightening. "You said we're in London, are we near the flat? There's something I want to grab, while we're here."

He paused, thought for a moment. "Yeah, I think so. Oughta be." Or else he'd missed a little.

"Alright, back in a sec!" She smiled at him, before making her way toward and out the door. Jack wondered what she'd forgotten, but didn't mention it. "Any plans for the next locale?" He asked instead.

He shrugged, looking down for a moment to where the table-drawer contraption he'd put the box in had been. It wasn't there anymore, and just as well. "None at all! Figure it's more fun that way, right? Got anything in mind?"

"Could've sworn we've had this conversation before. Same offers still stand. You haven't spent much time off planet lately though, have you?" Jack noticed, and decided it needed a mention.

"Not much at all." That was a curious thing. He always seemed to end up back on Earth lately. "Maybe could change that." He liked Earth, yes, but... he hated staying in one place.

"Sounds like a plan to me. Plenty of other trouble to get into out there." Jack said casually. "Going from what I've heard, you haven't actually Rose further then orbit. She more interested in the 'time' aspect, I take it?"

"Seems it. And, well.. circumstances." He shrugged helplessly. They had ended up in places purely by accident quite a bit lately. "We've been some places, though - I mean, we don't spend all our time down here." Somehow he managed to make the very idea sound like it was some kind of an insult. Maybe to him it was, in an odd way. "Couldn't hurt to go out farther."

"As long as you keep it up with the 'habitable' planets, I don't see how it could." He grinned. "But I'd imagine you've got experience." Around that time, the door opened and Rose came back into the TARDIS. She was clutching a book triumphantly to her chest. "Found it!"

"Yeah, well--" He was cut off by Rose coming back in, and blinked. "Got what? Planning to share with the class?" He asked, with an amused sort of smile.

"That's why I brought it." Moving accross the room she held the book out to him. It was think, and bore a resemblance more of a binder then anything. "Figured it was only fair."

He looked at the binder-book-thing for a moment before he took it, looking at Rose. "..what is it?" He asked, opening it a little bit cautiously. It was hard to tell if he was exaggerating the cautiousness or not.

"Photo album. Had it ages, and I figured since I was looking through yours, fair's fair." Rose shrugged slightly. "Mostly old ones." She admitted. "Mum hasn't added anymore for ages."

"Oh." He paused, put off his balance by that. He hadn't been expecting it. "..your mum isn't going to kill me for kidnapping you and the photos, is she?"

"Like I said, she hasn't touched it for ages." Rose assured him. "Long as it gets back in one piece eventually, it'll be fine." She sounded very sure of herself. Jack watched them from where he was standing.

"Ah, good. Just making sure." He grinned, looking down at the first page of photos thoughtfully and adding, "'Cause I do think your mum means to kill me someday. Or am I being paranoid? Cute picture." Rambling a little bit. Not that was anything new, but, well.

"A bit. She'd probably try spmething more discreet." Rose pointed out people in the pictures, naming ones whose names she remembered. She used to flip through it alot, looking back on the other times.

"I'd say poison, but I don't think it'd work.. discreet, though," he joked. Listened patiently to her explanations and memories - sometimes asking questions, but mostly listening. If most people tried this, he'd've been fidgeting five minutes in, but he didn't mind so much when it was her.

There was a point about a dozen pages from the back where Rose stopped. "This is the end of it, she never got round to filling the rest of the book. Stopped taking as many pictures." She realized idly that now there wasn't anything to take pictures of. Her interest was off the book now, assured by the familiar last photos of the book that it was ended. But through an empty slot on the right page, another picture could be seen.

He nodded, but turned the page anyway, curious as to what it was he was seeing through the clear empty spot. He couldn't help it, really - he wasn't going to just not look.

There were pictures of him and Rose, both versions. Some looked like they'd just been printed, but others were actual photos. All of them were very candid, some to the point where they looked like they'd been taken from security cameras. One page was made up of small clippings, presumably from the background of other pictures. Rose blinked at them slowly.

"..your mum's been doing her homework, hasn't she," he commented, raising an eyebrow at some of the pictures. The actual photos he could get - some of those must have been taken when they weren't paying attention, a few even in the flat (and how he'd missed that, he would never know) - but there was no way Jackie Tyler had gotten some of those pictures.

"Yeah... Some of these are definitely printed out. Wonder if she had Mickey look on the internet?" Rose muttered, just staring at them. "Didn't know these were in here, I wonder why...?"

"Dunno - maybe she wanted you to find them. Maybe just 'cause you're in them." He didn't pretend to be an expert on human psychology and motivation - just an observer. Well, sort of an observer. He did get involved sometimes. "These have got to be from some kind've security camera or something.. wonder where they got these?"

"She has a lot of friends. Maybe she's been telling people to keep an eye out for us?" The thought was a bit unsettling, really. "Might've gotten MIckey's help, he's not bad on computers." Rose tried to shake the thoughts out of her head. "Anyway, hope I didn't bore you to death with the rest of the pictures." She joked.

"That's weird.." He got a bad feeling from those pictures, and he wasn't sure why - maybe it was just the idea that someone was taking pictures of them, but maybe it was something else. He couldn't say for sure. The joke made him pause, and he smiled, pushing the suspicious thoughts to the back of his mind. "Nah, not at all. Blackmail material for later," he assured her.

That sparked her curiosity. "What're you going to blackmail me for exactly? With which, too. Half the neighbourhood's seen the lot of them. Even that one I covered." Rose told him slyly. Jack spoke up for the first time in awhile. "Should've let me know if there was something good in there." He teased.

"Neighbourhood, sure, but next time you try and bring someone else on board, you know.." Pause. "No offense, Jack." Jack, he could stand. But he hadn't forgotten some of Rose's less fortunate 'boyfriends'. "Whole universe out there, after all."

"Right, you're going to what, go back and carve copies into some famous hieroglyphics or something? Can't quite see how most of it's blackmail material. B'sides," She grinned. "group of four'd be a bit much."

"Yes. Yes, I will do exactly that - or pictograms, something like that. Make everyone wonder." He tried to pretend to be serious, but grinned anyway. "And yeah, anymore than three and I have to kick someone out the TARDIS. So you'd best not try it."

"Sure you'd still want me around once you've made me a celebrity?" She gave her own attempt at playing serious. "Being stopped everywhere, 'Hey, aren't you the one...'?" She tilted her head. "I'll keep the 'carrying capacity' in mind."

"I'd cope - anyhow, how many of you lot actually look at old heiroglyphics? So you'd just get stuck by.. historians, and guys who really like hanging out in museums. Possibly modern artists."

"Thought you were going for universal threats here." She faked disapointment. "Well I'd have one more place I hardly go to avoid. Speaking of, decided where next?" Rose asked, curious.

"I could make universal threats - I could, but I'll leave it to your imagination." Still grinning, he looked to the console and shrugged. "Dunno yet. I was thinking on just letting the TARDIS pick time and place, but who knows where we'd end up then? Definitely not Earth. A change of pace is in order." The last statement was said enthusiastically, but not without sarcasm.

"She seems to have the final choice in the matter at the end anyway, so why not?" Rose smiled at him. "Anywhere sounds fine." "Change of pace I can't see happening. Change of scenery however..." Jack grinned. "As long as it's just the landscape."

"Right, well - I can't guarantee the landscape's the only thing that'll be different, but we'll give it a try." He nodded, going back to the console, leaving Rose's photo album atop the small table in which he'd put the box, which seemed to have materialized again. That was the TARDIS for you - it conformed to the needs of its owner.

The buttons and switches seemed to behave this time, maybe because he wasn't trying to force the TARDIS to go any particular place. Anyway, there weren't any sparks. It did, however, shake as violently as ever as it dematerialized.


End file.
